Suicide Death Note (Dirty Version)
by 3DPhantom
Summary: Robin is depressed, and is losing his reasons to live. Every friend is pulling away, and he feels un-needed. When the Young Justice team forms a band and excludes Robin, Robin finds a new band. Now, Robin chooses a stage name; Suicide. And this new band is his Death Note. A/N: based on song "Last Resort" by 'Papa Roach'. Cussing included, I also wrote a Clean Version.
1. You Readers Can Skip This

Suicide Death Note (Dirty)

You Readers Can Skip This…

Summary:

Robin is depressed, and is losing his reasons to live. Every friend is pulling away, and he feels un-needed. When the Young Justice team forms a band and excludes Robin, Robin finds a new band. Now, Robin chooses a stage name; Suicide. And this new band is his Death Note. A/N: based on song "Last Resort" by 'Papa Roach'. Cussing included, I also wrote a Clean Version.

A/N: This is based on the Song "Last Resort" by Papa Roach. This song has a lot of cussing, so, just like the song, I'm going to write both this (The dirty version) and a clean version of this story. I'll be updating them both at the same time, so you won't fall behind if you want to read either version.

Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice, just Robin's band. I also don't own the song I claim to be Robin's original piece, Papa Roach is the real band that preformed it.

Songwriters of Last Resort:

ESPERANCE, TOBIN / SHADDIX, JACOBY / HORTON, JERRY / BUCKNER, DAVID

Other Artists and their Songs include: _Evanescence_ with the song **"Bring Me to Life,"** _Flyleaf_ with **"Fully Alive,"** And _Dragon Force_ with **"Through the Fire and the Flames."**

Advertisement: Synthesia rocks so much! I used the midi files so each band member is playing an instrument that is actually used in the song. So props to Synthesia, and I got the free version!

One last thing; to anyone who reviews my story, I will include your name in the last chapter as a special thank-you for your encouragement, criticism, and support. (Unless you ask me not to mention you.)

Sorry for the long Note, but I think I got everything covered, so here it is…

Suicide Death Note…


	2. Chapter 1: First Week of Depression

Chapter 1: First Week of Depression

**The First Week of December… Robin is Depressed**

For Robin, the Boy Wonder, and Dick Grayson, the Rich Kid, this week sucked. Nothing went right.

For Dick Grayson, school was a literal hell. Football was in its off-season, which left the football team bored and greedy. Dick had already received five beatings in the form of "Christmas Presents" by Tuesday night. And his History teacher had decided to assign a project that was due at the end of the week which included reading "A Christmas Carol" and then writing a ten-page essay. Dick had finished the book by Wednesday night, but he ended up writing eight essays due to, again, the football team.

But compared to Robin, Dick Grayson had it easy. Crime always jumped exceedingly around Christmas. There had been dozens of robberies, break-ins, and several kidnappings. Batman was off-world Monday through Friday on an unavoidable mission, so Robin had to deal with it all himself. But his biggest problem occurred Friday night…

Batman trusted Robin completely, and had faith that the boy could handle anything that was thrown his way. But, there was always one villain that Batman told Robin to stay away from… the Joker. But, on Friday night, Joker had grown restless.

Robin was doing his usual patrol which, in December, included five intermediate robberies. Like the Wonder he is, Robin had caught the first four within minutes and was circling back around to a robbery at the Gotham City Wonderland, which was a major toy store. But, upon arrival, Robin quickly realized that the situation was beyond him.

Through the large windows that made the entire front wall of the toy store, Robin could see a dangerous hostage situation. There were about fifteen children lined up in a row, tied together, and surrounded by large canisters. Robin didn't care what the canisters held, because whatever they were, they were dangerous.

Prancing about in front of the children was the Joker who had Harley Quinn clinging to him with a big smile. In the Joker's hand was a small detonator, and all he had to do was push the button to kill the children.

The front doors were blocked by seven well-built men with guns and clown-masks. Five police cars had just arrived on-scene. Robin noted that Commissioner Gordon had not yet arrived. Stealthily, he made his way down to the police lineup. He heard and officer call "Aim!" and Robin felt that they were about to make a terrible mistake. Before he could react, the officer confirmed his suspicion and called out "Fire!"

Just as it was said, the children and the Joker hit the floor, trying to avoid the gunfire. Robin jumped into action; he had to stop the gunfire before the Joker got killed. He leapt onto one of the police cars in the front of the line of fire, spread his arms, and ordered a cease fire. Not wanting to hit him, the gunfire quickly stopped, and the officers looked around in confusion. The officer who had ordered 'Fire' came forward and stood in front of Robin.

"What the hell do you think you're doing kid?!" He screamed angrily, and made a grab for Robin's arm. With quick reflexes, Robin flipped onto the ground and stood at the officer's side.

"What am I doing? What are you doing?! Are you trying to get everyone KILLED?!" Robin accused the officer.

"I'm trying to kill that sadistic maniac before he presses that button!"

"Well it won't work, just wait for the Commissioner to get here."

The officer looked down at him angrily. "Now that maniac in there made a mistake. He set himself in a position where we can easily stop him with a bullet. Now, give me one good reason why I shouldn't do exactly that!"

"Because he's the Joker, he always has a backup plan. If you kill him, you'll set things into motion. He probably has goons that are ordered to blow both this place and a dozen other locations upon his death. Killing him isn't an option because he's more dangerous dead than alive; he has too many pieces in this game that are triggered only by the event of his death."

The officer looked at him dumbfounded. "Are you saying that if we kill him, things will get worse?!"

Robin rolled his eyes under his mask. '_Man, this guy is an idiot. He doesn't even know the Joker's habits.' _Robin thought. "Just wait until Commissioner Gordon gets here. Don't do anything until then."

With that, Robin disappeared into the shadows of the rooftops. _'Well, now what?'_ He thought. _'Maybe I can go in from the back while Joker is distracted by the police up front.'_

It wasn't much of a plan, but it had to do. So, with quiet speed and stealth, he moved to the back of the building. There, he found an office window two floors up that had been left open. Before he entered, he hacked into the camera feed and shut off the power. Then he proceeded to cut the power to the whole building. _'Like Batman always says, your eyes can deceive you, so it's best to stay in the dark.' _He found his way carefully to the bottom floor from the third-level office. Once there, he found an air duct to crawl through.

_'Joker isn't usually this careless. He would normally have guards in the back. Something isn't right.'_

_'Maybe Joker has figured out that Batman isn't in Gotham, that I'm alone. Maybe this is a trap.'_ Robin argued with himself in his thoughts.

_'Still, trap or no trap, I have to save those kids. Maybe Joker can settle for just catching me.'_

Now, Robin was on a second-floor balcony where he could look down at the bottom floor of the main toy room. Down below, the children were on their knees, crying for help. Joker was bent down talking to one of them, and Robin's eyes widened as Joker pulled a blade and let it rest on the child's cheek.

_'I have to do something now, before he can hurt them.'_

The police had shined several spotlights into the room, which was stealing Robin of his shadowed attack. Robin pulled out a mirror and begun to reflect the light in a pattern.

_'If Gordon is there, he'll know what I'm telling him.'_

And, just as Robin suspected, Gordon picked up on the message which meant "Turn the lights off."

Moments later, the room filled with a comforting darkness.

_'Now's my chance.'_

He dove forward, flying past the children and the Joker. Between Joker and the door, Robin stood his ground. He could feel the movements around him; the seven guards had come inside. With blinding speed and accuracy, Robin attacked.

He lunged at one of the guards, shoving him to the ground. Using that same momentum, he did a hand stand off the guard's chest and kicked another in the face. He spun as he heard the click of a gun, and he tumbled to the ground as it went off. He rolled forward and hit the gun from underneath, causing it to fall to the floor. Then, with an upward motion, he thrust his palm, hitting the goon in the jaw and sending him back.

_'Three down, four to go.'_

Three more lunged at him simultaneously, and Robin leapt into the air at the last possible second, then he came down onto their heads, knocking them unconscious. The last guard turned towards the commotion, just in time to see a shadowed figure lunge at him. He fired a few pointless shots before he was knocked to the ground unconscious.

Robin then turned to the children and cut their ropes. A few of the children cried and hugged him.

"Now, run to the doors, it's safe. Don't stop until the police have you," he whispered to them, "Go, Now!" With a sudden urgency, the children filed out the doors and into the parking lot. Robin was about to disappear when the lights flicked back on.

_'Crap.' _He thought, and looked over to see Harley with a laptop. '_She must have turned them back on.'_ Robin threw one of his projectiles and hit the laptop with accuracy. His device beeped and Harley dropped the laptop to run. But she was too late as it exploded and she was thrown into a wall.

Robin turned and faced the Joker now. _'This is where things tend to go wrong.'_

"Well, well, well! If it isn't my favorite bird boy!" Joker said, and secretly, his voice sent chills down Robin's spine. "I was hoping you'd come! And I see my suspicions are correct, the Big Bad Bat isn't around to save you!"

"Give it up Joker; there are a dozen officers outside and only one of you. Your goons proved to be utterly useless, by the way."

The Joker nodded and smiled. "Well, Boy Blunder, can you tell me then; why haven't the police come in and taken me away yet?" Robin glared at the man. "In case you've forgotten, I still have a hostage."

"Is that so?" Robin shuddered inwardly. _'He's right. I've put myself in a bad position. He still has the remote, and I'm standing here by these deadly cans of… whatever. I wonder if this was Joker's plan all along.'_

Joker laughed crazily. "Well boy, looks like we've gotten ourselves into a situation! But don't worry, I can tell you how it goes from here. You're my new hostage, and there's nothing you can do about it. See, this is a toy store, and I came to get a toy; that's you. I'll play with you a little, and then a helicopter will land on the roof, and I'll leave."

The Joker picked up a metal bat from a shelf and begun to walk forward. "It's almost Christmas, and I'm in a good mood, so I won't kill you. Just make sure to tell the Big Bat I said hello." He hit the bat against his palm and lunged. In this situation, Robin could do nothing but take the beating; otherwise, he risked suffering what was in the cans.

Commissioner Gordon watched helplessly as the young hero was beaten. He couldn't risk the Joker pressing the button, because that would kill the boy for sure. He was forced to just watch instead, and hope that the Joker didn't kill him.

About ten minutes went by and Robin lay on the floor panting. He was sure almost all of his ribs were broken, and one of his ribs may have pierced one of his lungs. But now, Robin could hear the drown of a helicopter above him, and the Joker smiled down at him.

"Well, it's been fun, but I have to go now!" And the Joker made his way to the stairs. Once at the top, Joker stopped and looked back. He lifted the remote and pressed the button. Robin's eyes went wide and he could hear the gasps and screams of people outside. Robin stared in fear as the tops of the cans popped off.

But, to his surprise, the cans split in two once the lids were off and thousands of pennies spread across the floor in waves.

_'Canisters of pennies.' _Robin laughed in dismay, but it came out as more of a cough and blood splattered the floor. _'Well,'_ Robin thought angrily _'Fuck you Joker.' _He was laying here in pain because Joker filled some cans with PENNIES! This whole time, and it was only pennies.

The police and medics were approaching the front door now, and Robin had to get up.

_'It hurts like hell, but I can't let them take me to the hospital. They'll find out my secret Identity. I'll have to get back to the cave on my own and have Alfred help me.'_

So, in unimaginable pain, Robin managed to stand without screaming. He shot his grappling hook to the second floor and swung upwards. He heard the police spring at him and stop where he had been only moments ago.

"No Robin, wait!" The Commissioner called out, but Robin ignored him. He made his way to the back window by forcing himself to run. He held his breath as he couldn't breathe and walk at the same time. Once he was out the window and onto the next rooftop, he began a seemingly lifetime journey back to the cave. Still, he pushed himself to go as fast as he could.

_'If I take it slow, it will hurt less, but I'll bleed to death internally before I make it home.'_

He would have liked nothing more than to be allowed to drive the Bat-Mobile at a time like this, and his bike has been out-of-order since an explosion two days ago. Besides, his bike didn't have auto-pilot.

Finally, he entered the tunnel to the cave and walked the final two miles through it. Once in the cave, he called for Alfred and collapsed on the ground. He listened and waited for Alfred to come, and he forced himself not to fall asleep in fear of never waking back up.

He heard the elevator doors slide open and footsteps. "Master Richard?" Alfred called into the darkness. Alfred reached over and turned on the lights. He gasped as he saw the young boy on the ground, and he ran to his side. "Master Richard! Dear God, what happened?!"

"J-J-Joker," Dick replied weakly.

"Come, I must get you to the medical bay." He tried to support the boy as much as he could as Robin walked on shaky legs and stumbled his way along. The rest of the night, despite multiple sedatives, was spent in agony. Alfred couldn't give him a strong enough sedative to ease the pain without putting him to sleep. And once in sleep, Robin's breathing would surely stop.

Alfred worked for nearly four hours, and then stayed awake with him for the rest of the night, never leaving Robin's side. And Robin barley managed to keep his eyes opened; only the pain allowed him to stay awake. Bruce came home the next morning to find Robin on the cot and towels soaked in blood. Alfred was cleaning the blood as best he could when he looked up and saw Bruce staring with wide-eyes.

"Dick?! What the hell happened?!"

"Funny, that's like the opposite of what Alfred said."

"There's nothing funny about this Dick. Now answer me, what happened?" He walked over to the cot and placed his hand on Dick's shoulder.

"I Kind of got into trouble."

"Well, obviously! I can't leave you alone without you almost dying, can I? Who did this to you?"

Robin hesitated. _'He isn't going to listen to reason, he's going to be pissed that I didn't call the League for backup. But there was no time!' _He looked up and saw Bruce was becoming impatient.

"It was Joker." Bruce sucked in his breath. "He had hostages, and there wasn't time for backup from the League, Superman and Flash were off-world with you, and they were the only ones who could have gotten to me on time. I had to act or those kids were going to die." Bruce turned away from him angrily.

"You still shouldn't have gone in alone!" He said, and he hit the table with the tools on it, making it clatter and Robin jump.

"I didn't have a choice," he said timidly.

"You always have a choice Dick! I thought I'd taught you that by now!" He was getting louder and angrier. "You know that I've forbidden you from ever going up against him alone! I usually make you stay behind. Maybe I haven't taught you as well as I'd thought. Maybe I have too much faith in you. Maybe you shouldn't be Robin at all!" At that, Robin flinched.

Bruce turned and stormed out of the room. Secretly, he had seriously regretted that last comment, but taking it back would mean taking back everything he had said, and he had meant everything else. He was still angry at him.

_'He's really angry at me. I tried my best, and I thought I did a good enough job, I did save the kids. But, he didn't even ask me if I was alright. He doesn't want me as Robin anymore, that much is clear. It's not about my safety around The Joker, he doesn't care about that. It's something else. If he was worried, he would have made sure I was okay, but he didn't. So what did I really do wrong? Why is he so mad? Does he hate me now? Will he make me stop being Robin? If I stop being Robin, he won't have a use for me anymore. I'll be useless; just in the way. Then, will he give me up? Send me away? Is he going to give me back to the city? Am I going back to the orphanage? Or the detention center? Does he even still want me?'_

These thoughts plagued the young boy for the next weeks. Bruce stopped talking to him, and Robin found himself at the mount much more often. He still went on patrol, but a lot less often. For the first few days, he didn't go at all. And as the days passed, it worried him more and more; eating away at him.

Then came the day that he lost his last friends…


	3. Chapter 2: Denial

Chapter 2: Denial

**Wednesday, December 10****th****… Mount Justice**

Everyone was in Mount Justice, hiding from the cold winds of winter, and snow that clings the ground outside. Robin was in his room as the rest of the team set-up a wide variety of musical equipment.

M'gann smiled widely. "This is going to be great!" she said excitedly. "I've always wanted to do this!"

"Do what Miss. M?" Robin asked as he walked into the room.

Startled by Robin's sudden voice behind her, M'gann jumped a little and turned to him. "We're starting a team band!" she said excitedly.

Wally ran up behind them, "Do you play any instruments Rob?" he asked.

Robin thought for a moment. '_I won't mention that I can learn how to play any instrument in about five minutes.'_

"I can play Piano and the Guitar pretty well," Robin shrugged.

Superboy, Artemis, and Kaldur where listening now too.

"What type of Guitar?" Artemis questioned. "Do you play acoustic guitar, or electric? I would see you more of an electric guitarist."

"Either or," was Robin's only reply.

Superboy and Aqualad looked to each-other. Noticing the glance, M'gann linked herself to their minds.

_Include Artemis, _Kalder thought to M'gann. Artemis was soon in the link.

_Why the link?_ She asked telepathically.

_'Do you think we should actually let Robin be in the band?'_ Superboy cut in. '_The way he said 'either or' made it seem as if he has no clue what he's doing.'_

_'What is that supposed to mean?'_ M'gann asked confused.

_'My concern', _Aqualad inquired, '_is that he is a busy person. Besides him, the team spends hours a day in the mount. But Robin, he is out patrolling Gotham most of the time. I don't think he has the time to practice with us or to be in a band.'_

_'You may be right,' _Artemis thought. They turned to Robin and Wally who were chatting uselessly.

"So, should I go get my guitar?" Robin asked Kalder.

Kalder glanced uneasily at the rest of the team. "Actually Robin, it may be best if you were not troubled with being a member of a band." Robin was always a fine actor, but Aqualad swore he saw the side of his mouth twitch down for a split second.

Robin thought to himself. '_I knew they were having a telepathic discussion. I get it; they don't want me as a member. They're sick of me being around. Just like Bruce, they don't want me anymore.'_

"Aqualad, what do you mean?" Wally asked. He was surprised at what Aqualad had just implied. '_He's implying that Robin wouldn't be a good person to have in the band'. _The speedster thought angrily.

Seeing that the day was going downhill and hoping to salvage it, Robin looked down at his watch. Then back up to Wally. "They're probably right; I have patrol in an hour anyways. I'll never be here to practice," Robin said, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I should probably go now anyways. Batman doesn't like me showing up at the last possible minute." With that, Robin walked past his team and to the Zeta beam. '_Now they don't want me around either_,' he thought as the monotone voice announced his departure. "Robin-B01," it said loudly as he passed through the light.

Wally turned to Aqualad. "What was that all about?!"

"Do you even know if he can really play?" Superboy asked Wally.

"Well, I've never seen him do anything musical, but…"

"And if you're his best friend, and you don't know about it, than he probably isn't passionate about music anyways," Superboy said harshly and turned to the stage they had just set up for practice. "If you want to be in the band, than I suggest you grab an instrument."

Wally sighed and didn't press any further, but, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zatanna. She had been quiet the whole time, but she also didn't look pleased. '_At least someone agrees with me,'_ Wally thought as he picked up a fiery blue electric guitar. '_I wonder how Rob really feels about it.'_

What the team didn't know is that, besides at the Mount, the only place left for their friend Robin was a large, empty mansion that he used to call home. The Mount was the last place he had felt he fit in, but now; he felt alone. Nobody wanted him around, and he was taking it hard. It was killing him.

A/N: Hope you liked it, although that chapter wasn't among my best, and it was really short. I promise the others are longer and, in my opinion, way better. Please R&R!


	4. Chapter 3: Choosing Sides

Chapter 3: Choosing Sides

**Friday, December 12****th**** … Mount Justice**

The team had just finished practice, which had gone fairly well. Each member was tired and had a headache from concentrating for the last two and a half hours. M'gann rushed into the kitchen to prepare dinner for her fellow team-mates.

"So," Artemis began, "I think that went really well."

Kaldur nodded in agreement. "It is certainly good for the team."

"And we totally rock!" Wally said enthusiastically. Kaldur smiled.

"Yes, I suppose we do."

Artemis nodded in agreement. "So…" she tried to act casual, "Do we have a gig yet?" Everyone turned to Kaldur'ahm, who shook his head, indicating that they did not.

"Man…" Wally began to complain, but was cut off by Artemis.

"Well, in that case, I heard Gotham is having a serious rock-band competition." She smiled. Everyone turned to her.

"Where did you hear that?" Wally asked. Artemis thought back to the day before in the Gotham Academy's halls.

_~ Flashback ~~ Flashback! ~~ FLASHBACK ~~ FLASHBACK! ~_

**_Thursday, December 11_****_th_****_… Gotham Academy_**

_She walked through the halls quietly; her binder was tightly tucked against her chest. She was thinking about the band, which meant she wasn't watching where she was going. Walking with long, steady, powerful strides, she walked to class, all the time looking to the ground in a daydream._

_Suddenly, a small body collided with hers. The impact barley felt like a shove, and her binder remained firmly in her grasp, but for the other person, it was like walking into a brick wall. She looked down to see the small frame of a young boy, his head hung down so that his dark ebony hair covered his face. With his head still cast downward, he began to pick up his scattered things._

_'I'm going to be late for French class,' Artemis thought, but she also felt guilty for not paying attention to where she was going. With a sigh, she set her binder down and begun to collect papers._

_"Sorry," a small, shy voice whispered, and she looked up to the young boy._

_"Sorry, for what? I wasn't paying attention, so it was my fault," Artemis corrected him. He looked up at her and Artemis's breath caught._

_Behind the dark black hair was a pair of bright blue eyes, and now that she could see him, it was obvious that it was none other than Dick Grayson, the richest boy in school. Everyone knew him as the legal ward of the multi-billionaire Bruce Wayne._

_But something wasn't right. He looked sad, and he didn't smile like he always did when he was on TV. His blue eyes didn't hold much energy; they were dull. Artemis wondered what was wrong. Dick looked back down and begun to pick up more papers._

_'Should I ask him about it?' Artemis wondered. 'He doesn't even know me.' So instead, she continued to reach for papers. One paper caught her interest though._

_She reached and picked up a flyer that read, "Battle of the Bands, first two Saturdays of winter vacation. Bring your own beer." Artemis rolled her eyes and continued to read. "At the Gotham Docks, Warehouse 1B. Fuckers not allowed, register now or at the door. Call: *555 - 6131* for pre registry."_

_Artemis looked up to see Grayson staring at her; he had gathered the rest of his papers while she was reading. "Are you in a band?" She asked, and the boy seemed to look sadder. He cast his eyes downward yet again._

_"No," he said quietly and stood. He looked back up at her and forced a smile. "Some of my friends have a band, and I wanted to help them find a gig is all," he said cheerily._

_"And you secretly want to be a part of it?"_

_His smile dimmed, but still held its place. "Yah, but they pretty much laughed at me when I wanted to join."_

_'Poor kid,' Artemis thought. "Well, there are plenty of bands out there, maybe you can surprise them and find one of your own." He smiled widely, and Artemis's heart melted. 'He is so cute!'_

_"Yeah, you're right, thanks," he said and begun to walk past her. She made a motion to give him his flyer, but his back was already to her. Suddenly the bell gave a loud ring._

_'Crap,' Artemis thought and hurried off to class._

_~End Flashback~_

Artemis now turned to Wally and pulled out the flyer. "I, uh, found this online."

Wally snatched it up and begun to read. He laughed twice at the inappropriateness. "You know what the last four digits in the phone number spell?" He asked happily. Artemis rolled her eyes.

"Just don't say it out loud."

"So are we signing up?" Zatanna asked curiously.

Kaldur nodded, "I don't see why not."

"Maybe we should consult with Robin first," M'gann said quietly, and Superboy crossed his arms.

"Why? We don't need his permission!" Conner said unhappily.

"No, I didn't mean it that way," M'gann half apologized, "I only meant that we don't know what Gotham is like, and the Dock's Warehouse District sounds dangerous. We should ask him if it's a Crime-Lord's area, or if a lot of crime happens there."

"I agree," Kaldur said, "The last thing we need is to run into a major gang of Gotham. If that were to happen, we would have to take them down, and Batman would find the evidence of our being there. And I'm sure Batman would disapprove greatly."

Conner snorted. "Robin will probably just tell us it's dangerous so we won't go."

"Wow Supes, I didn't know you had that much faith in me," a sarcastic voice said from behind, startling the team.

"Robin, he didn't…" Zatanna begun an apology, but Superboy cut her off.

"Yes I did," he stated simply.

"And it doesn't matter," Robin directed at both Zatanna and Superboy. "You guys are old enough to keep out of trouble. Or, at least I would assume so," Robin said with a smirk, referring to Superboy's lack of true age; having been made only months ago."

Wally and Artemis both rolled their eyes while Conner looked pissed off.

"I think I can manage to keep them out of trouble," Kaldur said cheerfully, and M'gann giggled.

"Good, only one thing then," Robin said, "You can't talk to me while we're there."

Everyone in the room froze, the smiles disappearing.

"What do you mean, 'While WE're there? You're not going!" Conner said angrily.

"Actually, my band had signed up for it days ago," Robin didn't smile as he spoke.

"You don't have a band!" Superboy said, looking like he was going to punch something.

"Actually, I joined one this morning," Robin said, his smile slightly returning.

"So now you're the competition?!" Wally asked angrily.

"There's nothing wrong with…" Robin begun, but was cut off.

"You can't do this, Robin! You're only doing it because you're mad at us!" Artemis screamed.

"We don't have to worry about losing at least. Robin can't even play," Conner mocked.

Robin ignored Conner's remark and begun an argument with Artemis. "You are such a hypocrite."

"How so?"

"In two ways, one of them being that you're worrying about how I might try to control you, but you're the one who's telling me what to do."

"But we are older! We can tell you what to do! And Kaldur is the leader, including over you."

"Wait," Kaldur said, now interrupting Artemis and Robin's quarrel. "I'm not going to tell Robin what to do. If he wants to join a band, than I think it's an excellent idea. It's good for team building too."

"How is Robin's betrayal good for team building?!" Wally threw his arms out angrily.

"It's only a betrayal in your mind," Kaldur said.

"This team could use some friendly competition. Kaldur is right, it'll be good for us if we can manage to work past this," Zatanna offered, but nobody received.

"What band did you join?" Wally asked angrily.

"And who would let you join?" Conner insulted Robin without a second thought.

"Dude, you didn't bribe them, did you? How much did you pay them? Did you offer them all new equipment?" Wally asked again angrily.

"Robin, you're rich?!" M'gann asked, easily catching on. Robin smacked Wally on the back of the head.

"Nice going Kid Mouth!"

"So, you bribed them with money?"Artemis asked in a complete rage.

"NO!" Robin said, getting angry himself. "Though if you must know, I did make a deal with them, but it has nothing to do with money!"

"What did you promise them?!" Wally asked angrily.

"I don't have to tell you!"

"Whatever," Conner said gruffly and went to turn on the TV. He had had enough of this, so he simply decided to drop out of the debate. He switched it to his favorite channel; static. "**Do you guys ever hear people talking through the static? **" He asked, but everyone ignored him.

"Fine whatever, do what you want," Artemis said and shoved Robin angrily as she walked by.

Wally sighed, "I don't agree with you on this." He said disappointedly. "And I don't want to see you again until you're ready to tell me what you promised them." Then he walked away sadly; following Artemis out of the room.

"Well that went well," Robin said sadly. "Thanks, by the way," he said, turning to Kaldur and Zatanna.

"For what?" Zatanna asked confusedly.

"For not being angry."

With that, Robin walked towards the Zeta-tubes.

"Where are you going?" Kaldur asked.

"To practice," was the only reply he received before Robin was swallowed in light.

A/N: I am not doing this story in complete chronological order, but it will all make sense. Hope you guys liked it. Please R&R.

*See if you can decode the phone Number and tell me the answer in a Review! The answer and first person to get it right will be mentioned in the end! *

**See if you can guess what movie this is from. I'll give you a hint; the movie is very famous. Tell me what you think in a review. The answer and first person to get it right will be mentioned in the end! **


	5. Chapter 4: Sneaking Out to Join a Band

Chapter 4: Sneaking Out to Join a Band

**Friday, December 12****th****… Early in the Morning**

Dick slipped on his black slick overcoat; it covered him almost completely, allowing him to blend with the shadows. He wore a dark red shirt underneath, and slick black jeans. He pulled the collar of the coat up so that is covered the sides of his face and blocked most of his face from view. Next, he let his slick black hair fall forward. Now he pulled on a pair of black boots. Finally, he took out his sunglasses. He wore his sunglasses to cover his eyes, even at night.

It was raining down like tears outside, but it didn't matter. Once again pulling at the slick black coat, he opened the window. He was four stories up since the first floor had every room twice the normal height. Dick looked straight out into the night.

Some ten feet away was the only branch he could reach, and it was something that most people wouldn't be able to do. But, being a Grayson, Dick cleared the gap easily, even in the rain. He surged upward and landed lightly in the tree. Then, with a quick pace, he jumped from one branch to the next, sticking his landing every time, despite the rain. He was soon on the ground and walking off the Wayne property.

His hair clung to his forehead as he walked down the empty streets of Gotham. _'Now all I have to do is not get caught by Batman,'_ He thought to himself as he watched the rooftops. He was startled as loud, drunken laughter rang out ahead of him. He looked ahead to see a group of roughly seven men walking his way, all of them laughing and stumbling along. One of the men looked up and spotted him.

"Hey, you!" He called out to him and waved, as if they were old friends.

Dick's instincts told him exactly what to do, to walk right by and ignore them. If they attack, beat the crap out of them. It was an easy enough feat for the Boy Wonder, and in his current dress, he wouldn't be recognized as the Grayson.

The distance between them was growing ever smaller, and the men begun taunting him.

"Hey little kid, what you doing out here?" One of the asked less than perfectly.

"Did you get lost? Runaway? Or maybe you just were looking for some friends?"

"We'll be your friends!"

Dick walked straight on so he could walk right by them, as if they weren't even there. He came straight up to the group and was walking right through the center when one of them grabbed him by the arm.

"Hey, we just want someone to hang out with," one of them said, but Dick didn't hear him. Instead, he was glancing up from behind his glasses at a shadowed figure.

_'Oh great, it's Batman. I'm dead.'_ He thought as the figure watched him from a nearby rooftop. _'Maybe in this rain and in this disguise he won't recognize me.' _But he knew that hoping for that was a lost cause.

Dick was pulled back into his current situation on the ground when one of the men wrapped his arm around Dick's waist. As a response, he simply put his hand over the drunken guy's face and straightened his arm, causing the drunkard to be pushed back. It wasn't a hard push, but because he was drunk he fell to the ground.

"Hands off," Dick said sternly and simply.

The man on the ground looked up at him and laughed. "Oh, c'mon kid, you ain't got to worry about little old me. I ain't goanna hurt ya." He said as he rose back to his feet with the help of two others. The man took another step towards Dick, and Dick pulled his hands out of his pocket at let them rest at his sides.

_'Now all he has to do is touch me again.' _Dick thought.

Up on the rooftop, Batman was having his own thoughts. _'I don't know what Dick's doing here, but I suppose as long as he comes home unharmed, there's no reason to be angry. And he's unrecognizable as either Dick Grayson or Robin. Besides, Dick can handle himself, and he's going to beat the living hell out of these guys.' _But inwardly, both Batman and Bruce Wayne wanted to be the one to kick their asses. He didn't take well to people messing with his son, even if Dick could handle it himself. So, before Dick got a chance to do anything, Batman glided silently off the ledge and landed on one of the drunks.

Dick decided it better to stand still why Batman had his way. He imagined Bruce was pissed at him for sneaking out, and now he was taking it out on these poor drunken bastards.

After about twenty seconds, all the men lay on the ground and Dick stood facing his father's back.

"I trust you'll be home and alive by five," Dick heard the Batman say to him. Bruce tilted his head so he could see his son when he responded. Dick nodded his head, and Batman disappeared into the shadows.

Dick was surprised, to say the least. _'He didn't sound angry, but I'm sure I'm in major trouble when I get back. Why didn't he tell me to go home? He probably just doesn't want me there.'_

Dick moved silently on as if nothing had happened. He walked towards the Warehouse district of Gotham, and followed the sidewalk down until he found the right building. Even from outside, he could hear a band playing.

Each player was especially talented, but the song still didn't fall together. Their lead guitarist and singer had runaway together, and the guitarist had been the only girl in the band. Now it was a bunch of guys that no matter how many notes they hit correctly, they were still missing out. And for Dick, that was perfect. No teen would be able to play at a level high enough to compete with him, but a band of adults who've practice their whole life should be just good enough.

Before Dick went in, he walked over to a barrel in which he had hidden his guitar. He slung the case across his back, and walked coolly out of the rain and into the warehouse.

It was dimly lit in the corners, but it had several spotlights that sought out the center of the room where the band was performing. As he stepped into the light, one of the members stopped playing, causing all the others to stop and look up.

The drummer picked up an empty beer bottle. "Get out of here kid!" He yelled and chunked the bottle at him. Dick stepped easily to the side and the bottle crashed onto the floor.

"I didn't come for trouble," Dick said, "I came to join your band." They looked at each other and started laughing. Dick waited patiently for them to be done.

"Sorry kid," the acoustic guitarist said, "but I don't think you have what it takes."

"Aren't you going to hear me first?" The band laughed again.

"Sure, play for us!" the percussionist called jokingly. Dick smiled.

"The piece you're practicing," Dick asked, "its Dragon Force, right?" Again the band laughed and nodded their heads.

"Well, in that case," Dick pulled off the sling that held his guitar and unzipped it. As he pulled it out, the members' eyes widened.

"That's a real nice guitar for a kid like you," the Bass said. "Where'd you get it, did you steal it?"

In Dick's hand was a smooth guitar that was completely white. It had black strings and was, overall, a work of art. It curved in perfect symmetry, each side reflecting the other.

No," Dick replied, "I didn't steal it."

"Then where did you get it?" the lead asked.

"I got it for Christmas."

"From who?! The guitar shop?" The drum player laughed.

"Yeah, something like that." Dick slung it over his shoulder so it came back around in his grasp. The main thing that was special about this guitar was that it was reversible. Weather you were left-handed or right-handed, it didn't matter. At the moment, Dick was going to play with his left hand, just because he could.

"I'll play Overridden and Distortion," he said happily.

"Yeah, sure, and are you goanna sing for us too?" Dick nodded his head. "Well then," the band pulled together and played.

While they started the song, Dick plugged in his guitar. Then, on the seventeenth measure and twenty seconds into the song, he played.

No sooner than seven minutes later did the lead hit the last note. The band gave a happy cheer; they had finally found the perfect player to fill the void.

"Kid, I don't know who you are, but that was amazing" The acoustic called happily.

"Well," the lead cut in, "who are you." Dick looked at him and shrugged. The lead continued, "We need a new band name, our old leader had been Death and we had been the Death Parade. But without Death, we need something new."

Dick thought for a moment. "I'll be Suicide, and you guys can be Death-Note. Suicide Death Note." The band looked down at him, suddenly concerned.

"Suicide." The Bass player tried. "You aren't a runaway, are you kid? I don't have a problem with the name, but if you go kill yourself… I'll never live this down." The rest of the band nodded, but Dick just shook his head.

"No, I live here in Gotham, I'm not running away. And you don't have to worry, it's just a name."

"Well, all right then!" The drummer said cheerily and picked up a few beers. "We're officially a band again!" They cheered and one of them tried to hand him a beer. Dick pushed it away.

"Actually, I kind of need to make a deal with you," Suicide said.

"Alright, what is it?"

"I can only play with you guys until the Battle of the Bands is over. If you let me stay with you until then, I'll make you an album that can make you go down in history. We'll play the featured song at the competition on the last day of the battles. Then I have to drop out. You'll probably have a one-way ticket to Hollywood by then, and I'm afraid I can't go with you."

"Well, it sure sounds nice," the Bass said.

"Yeah, we're interested. Why not?" The Drummer said, meaning that they had accepted the deal.

"Alright, we can meet back here tomorrow night for another practice, one a clock." Suicide nodded and turned to leave.

"Whoa, wait a sec, Introductions! I… am Barton Lloyd, but you guys call me Mouth. And I… am the acoustics guitarist."

"I'm just Bone, and I'm the Bass."

"Me next! I'm Daniel Wrote, and you can call me Dan. I'm the percussionist or drummer."

"I'm the lead and I also play the keyboard and piano. These guys call me Rod, I don't know why."

There were two guys who had not yet spoken.

"I'm the extra guitarist," one of them said in a husky voice. "I'm Killer." Suicide made a mental note not to mess with him.

"And I'm the sound effects and sound quality management. I'm like the DJ, so you can just call me DJ."

Everyone had finished their introductions, and they now looked to Dick, expecting him to tell them who he was.

"I play instruments, almost any. I can learn any instrument in five minutes. I'm best at Voice, Piano, and different types of Guitars. You can call me Suicide." The band looked at him, impressed.

"And what's your real name kid?" Dan asked.

Dick thought about it for a moment. _'They won't tell anyone because it wouldn't do them any good. I would drop out if they did, and they'll always call me by Suicide.' _"Can you guys keep a secret?" The band nodded that they could.

Dick slid off his wet Overcoat and pulled off the glasses. He put his hand to his forehead and swiped his wet hair back. Now, he looked up at them with Blue eyes that shone brightly in the spotlight.

"I'm Dick Grayson."

The members looked at each other for a moment, and then refocused their eyes back on him.

"I just know you're goanna get us in trouble kid," Mouth said, shaking his head, "but, welcome to the band. Your first Gig is the Battle of the Bands, so be ready. One week." Dick smiled and took his hand in a handshake. He was officially Suicide.

**Friday, December 12****th****… Later at Mount Justice**

Robin walked through the Zeta beam later that same day. He was tiered because he had snuck out rather than slept. Now, he was avoiding Bruce by coming to the Mount. He walked in just in to find Wally reading a flyer for the Battle of the Bands, the same flyer Dick Grayson had given to Artemis. He had purposefully run into her so the band would have a gig. Secretly, he was still trying to help them out. If Robin had offered the gig, the team would have said no.

"So are we signing up?" Zatanna asked curiously.

Kaldur nodded, "I don't see why not."

Robin was surprised that M'gann wanted his opinion when she made a comment. "Maybe we should consult with Robin first," M'gann said quietly, and Superboy crossed his arms.

"Why? We don't need his permission!" Conner said unhappily. No, but he would need Batman's. Robin would ensure Batman didn't bother them about it though.

"No, I didn't mean it that way," M'gann half apologized, "I only meant that we don't know what Gotham is like, and the Dock's Warehouse District sounds dangerous. We should ask him if it's a Crime-Lord's area, or if a lot of crime happens there."

"I agree," Kaldur said, "The last thing we need is to run into a major gang of Gotham. If that were to happen, we would have to take them down, and Batman would find the evidence of our being there. And I'm sure Batman would disapprove greatly."

Robin would try his best to convince Batman, and he would be up all night for the next week ensuring Gotham was on its best behavior.

Conner snorted. "Robin will probably just tell us it's dangerous so we won't go."

_'Wow, that kind of hurt.' _Robin couldn't help but think.

He stepped into the light and stood right behind Superboy.

"Wow Supes, I didn't know you had that much faith in me." It was complete sarcasm.

A/N: I hope you guys liked it. Please R&R!


	6. Chapter 5: Monday through Wednesday

Chapter 5: Monday through Wednesday

A/N: This chapter includes the first half of the week before the battle of the bands and how much it sucks for Dick. I'm saying this because that means this chapter is extra long, so you're welcome! (; P) Hope you enjoy it!

**Monday, December 15****th****… The Batcave**

Robin limped painfully into the cave, Batman right on his heels. He didn't offer any support to the injured apprentice, and an angry scowl never left his face. Needless to say, the night had gone badly. It was six in the morning, which was much later than the dynamic duo usually stayed out. But Bane was in town, and he had broken every villain out of the Gotham Jail around midnight. Luckily for them, he hadn't busted out the Arkham crew.

Robin had been caught in an explosions set by one of the criminals near the end of the night; his mind had just been too exhausted to move quickly enough. Robin was painfully awake during that entire time, seeing as how he had to concentrate tremendously just to breath. Luckily, Gordon knew exactly what Batman was doing when he saw him shifting through the carnage, and had ordered his men to help. Even with twenty-five officers, the Dark Knight, and the Commissioner digging, it took the better part of an hour to free the boy. Batman had to carry him to the Bat-mobile.

Now Robin shifted uneasily under Batman's glare. "You screwed up," Batman said sternly. He pulled his cowl down to reveal Bruce Wayne, and Robin imitated him by removing his mask and exposing Dick Grayson's bright eyes.

"I know, and I'm sorry. I'll do better next time," the young boy promised tiredly.

"There may not be a next time. Robin has been making too many mistakes lately, and Dick Grayson has been neglecting school. This can't go on. Being Dick Grayson is your number one priority from now on." Bruce knew Dick couldn't handle being Robin anymore, and Bruce would much rather put an end to Robin than have Dick taken away from him.

"Bruce, please no! You can't do this to me! What about my team?! They're my friends! What about the people I help? This is the worst month of the year, and Gotham only gets worse. You need me! The team needs me!"

"I don't think they do. They have gone on missions recently without you, and things actually went as planned for a change." Dick stared with wide eyes. He hadn't been informed of any team missions. "And I've been protecting Gotham for a long time. I protected Gotham before you came, and I can protect it now. I can manage it on my own. Now go get ready for school."

_'T-they don't need me? Bruce, you don't need me? If you don't need me, how long will I be here?' _These thoughts shone brightly in the young boy's eyes.

Dick turned and walked away numbly. Nobody needed him anymore. And if Batman didn't need Robin, Bruce Wayne didn't need Dick Grayson. Dick went to get ready for school and get some last minute homework done. He didn't feel like eating breakfast, despite the empty feeling inside him.

**At Gotham Academy… Mid-Day**

Dick Grayson walked through his day numbly, barley paying any attention as school dragged on. He sat down in his desk. History was the most boring subject all day, and it was the subject just before lunch. So Dick sat there in his boring fifth-period History class while the teacher played a video on the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. He was so tired, he hadn't slept all night. All month, actually, had been comprised of an hours sleep every day or two. He was tired, and he saw his mind's eye slipping into his subconscious. The black and white footage on the screen before him begun to fade as black splotches coated his vision. Finding that he couldn't stay awake any longer, his eyes slid shut.

What seemed like only seconds later, a ruler came down hard onto his desk. He started awake and his papers fell to the floor. The classroom was empty besides the teacher and himself, all the other kids had gone to lunch. The teacher didn't scold him; she just sat down at her own desk.

_'Maybe I'm getting off with a warning.'_

Dick gathered his things and was about to walk out of the room when the teacher spoke. "I want you in here tomorrow after school, and I will be calling Mr. Wayne," she said, and a bell rung. "That was the lunch dismissal bell, now hurry off to class."

_'Great. I slept through lunch AND Bruce is going to be pissed. I wonder what's next.'_

Dick shuffled off to his next class. Now he was dreading going home.

**Later at the Wayne Manor**

Dick walked in and closed the door quietly. Maybe Bruce was in his study and hadn't heard Dick come in. Unfortunately, Dick wasn't that lucky. As he turned from the door, he ran into the sturdy figure of Bruce. He stepped back and kept his head down.

Bruce looked down at him coldly. "You'll be in your room studying all night. I don't want you to look away from your work for even a second. And you can go without dinner." Dick nodded and didn't say a word.

He headed up to his room and quietly closed the door. He wasn't hungry, so he didn't care for dinner; not that it was ever brought up to him. Dick tried to stay awake and study like Bruce had told him to do, but he found his eyes closing for the second time that day. Slowly, he drifted off into sleep.

_*Inside Dick's Nightmare*_

_He walked aimlessly through the pitch blackness. The darkness didn't bother him, he rather enjoyed it. It was the stillness that made him want to scream. The sound of his footsteps echoed off the walls that he could not see, and when he reached the place in which a wall should be, he would find only the continuing emptiness._

_'I'm inside of myself.' He thought. Instead of an out-of –body experience, he was looking deep into himself. He was alone, cold, and he was lost. Without anyone near, he felt dead._

_Suddenly, there was a blinding light and he stopped abruptly. As he slowly opened his eyes, he saw a large crowd gathered in front of him. He was on a stage, and his band was behind him. In the front row were his team, and his mentor. As Suicide, he had his white guitar strapped around him, and one hand touched it involuntarily. Everyone was screaming at him._

_"Do It!" They called. A hundred different voices battled each other as they screamed. Others screamed his name, "Suicide!" His family nodded at him, each member whispering "Do it, Suicide." They didn't say Suicide as If calling him by his name. They used it as an action. They were telling him to commit suicide._

_Robin looked down and saw his guitar pick was a razor. 'A Razor?' He thought. 'Can I even play with a Razor?'_

_Suicide looked to the crowd again and saw Alfred amongst them. "Play with the bloody razor!" He called in his English accent. But Dick saw it as something more. The lights went up and he now saw that he was in Mount Justice. "Use the Bloody Razor!" Alfred called again. Suicide looked down._

_With jagged movements and without being able to stop himself, he laid the Razor across his skin. On his wrist, over his vein, he pulled. Blood splattered and spewed. Now it really was a Bloody Razor. He cut himself four times on each wrist; two on the top and two on the bottom. The two on the bottom sliced the veins, causing blood to spew._

_Now Suicide placed his hands on his guitar again, in the positions as if to play. Blood streaked down the white guitar. The white and red clashed in a way that was frightening, yet somehow beautiful to the boy. He looked up and the room quieted; everyone was gone once again. He stood in a black room with a pure white floor, and the floor soaked up his blood. It stained it, permanently a part of the white marble._

_'My blood belongs to the ground' Dick thought, 'Perhaps it's time for it to return.'_

_Dick took a step and the distance in which he could see increased. On the ground before him lay his parent's broken bodies._

_'The ground beneath them was soaked in their blood, and now I should follow their example.' Dick raised the razor and let it rest on his throat. Then he slid it, easily slicing his neck. The world grew dim again, and he never felt more like Suicide. As he fell, he couldn't help but scream. He didn't want this; he was afraid._

Dick awakened in a cold sweat, his scream still echoing in the large, empty house and dyeing off. He had slept for three hours, but he was even more exhausted now than when he drifted off.

_'Crap, I'm late for practice with the band.' _He thought as he grabbed for his overcoat. He slipped on his glasses and boots, and then jumped out of the window. Bruce would kill him if he caught him out. But it didn't matter, Bruce hated him no-matter what. Dick walked down the drive and exited the property.

Bruce ran into the room about thirty seconds after Dick had screamed and about ten seconds after he had jumped out the window. Bruce had burst into the room to comfort his ward, but he was greeted by betrayal instead. Dick knew he was in trouble, but he had snuck out anyways. _'The next time I see him, he's going to know that all the punishment I've ever given him was child's play. Now he's going to see what can really happen when he disobeys me.'_

**Tuesday, December 16****th****… After School at Gotham Academy**

Bruce had a meeting early that morning, so Dick had gotten home after Bruce had already left. This one time, Dick was lucky. Unfortunately, Dick was currently sitting in Miss. Hearn's classroom finishing the video. He was also required to write a two-page essay along with the rest of his work. Dick was feeling queasy as he watched the video. He hadn't eaten Breakfast, and another teacher had pulled him out of lunch. But the food wasn't so important; it was the fact that he hadn't had a glass of water in a while. Going without water is almost as bad for you as going without air. And with the events from his last night as Robin and everything that's happened since, Dick had lost a lot of energy. Now his hands where starting to tremble. But he ignored it and placed his hands under the desk. He watched the video quietly.

Thirty minutes later, Miss. Hearn was dismissing him and Dick was beginning his long walk home. Bruce was going to be at work all day, and Alfred had the week off because it was the week he had Christmas early (Since he had to be at the Manor on actual Christmas.) All of this meant that no-one was going to pick him up and drive him home. Dick walked silently down the streets.

There was a lot of laughter and Dick glanced upwards. He didn't like what he saw.

In front of him were four of the members of the football team. This particular group was the worst when it came to beatings. The leader of this little gang looked up and spotted his favorite nerd.

"Hey, Grayson!" He called and he sped his pace. Dick stopped where he was. The large boy, known as Bradley, came up besides Dick and shoved him into an alleyway. "So Grayson, what are you doing here?"

Dick looked up at him. He wasn't in the mood for this; he was tiered, hungry, thirsty, and he wanted to go home. "I'm not here to give you your dose of steroids if that's what you mean."

Bradley looked down at him and smiled. "You going to cause trouble, Grayson?"

"No, you're doing that yourself." The other boys laughed and Oh'ed. Bradley silenced them by lifting Dick and slamming him into the concrete wall. Dick fell to the floor, but quickly scrambled to get up, dropping his backpack on the ground.

"Anything else you want to say, Grayson?"

Dick considered. He was already going to be beaten, and he didn't care at this point. He might as well make this worth it. "Yeah Bradley, I have something to say. It's probably more like a last request. Before I die, I want you to send a video of what you do all night with the coach to your grandmother. Then when she tells you to Fuck off, she can mean it."

A hand clamped sternly on Dick's throat, cutting off his air supply. With strong arms, Bradley shoved Dick against the wall and held him a foot above the ground. Dick struggled weakly in his grasp.

"You're right Grayson; those are the last words you'll ever say."

The grip on Dick's neck tightened and Dick let out a cry of desperation. Now his vision was blurring, and his eyes watered. _'Maybe I went too far.' _Dick thought inwardly. _'Well if I can't die as Robin, I might as well die bad-mouthing this dumb-fuck.'_

The small hands that had been clasping Bradley's wrists where loosening. He tried to draw in breath, but he just couldn't. His lungs cried out for air. Just before the world could fade, Dick heard a swishing sound and the pressure on his neck suddenly ceased. Dick fell to the ground, gasping.

He looked up just in time to see Bradley pull a green arrow away from where it had been pinning his sleeve to the wall.

A voice spoke, "Unless you want a dozen arrows pinning you to the wall, walk away." All the boys in the alley looked up to see Artemis on the building across from the one Dick had been hoisted up against. Dick kept his hair in his face and peered up through his bangs.

"Come on guys, this piece of shit isn't worth it," Bradley said as he nodded towards Dick. The boys all walked away and disappeared around the corner. Dick looked up again as Artemis landed by his side. She bent down next to him.

"Hey, are you okay?" She asked kindly. Dick sniffled a little and nodded his head. "Why didn't Mr. Wayne send someone to get you?"

"He and I aren't exactly on the best terms right now." Artemis frowned deeply and pulled Dick to his feet. Dick looked at the young hero beside him. She wore her green uniform, which meant Dick wasn't supposed to really know her.

"Well, just be careful, kid." She said, also keeping up the act. In her mind, she was thinking about not blowing her cover, and how he didn't know who she was.

"Will do, thanks." Dick said and left Artemis standing in the ally as he continued home.

Dick made it home and went to the kitchen. He didn't feel like eating still, so he went for a glass of water. He hadn't eaten or drunken anything since Sunday night, and he knew that an average person would die after three days without water. He didn't need food, but water was important. He figured, being him, he could last almost a week without water. Still, he wasn't going to chance it. He drank the glass of water, but his stomach churned. Having anything in him just made him want to throw up. He walked a few steps, but it just didn't feel right. Moments later, he spewed the water into the sink.

_'Fuck it. I don't even care. I can manage a few more days without water anyways.' _He knew this was going to be a problem, but ignored it.

Instead, he went upstairs and started on his homework. Several hours later, he heard the front door slam. Bruce was home.

Wanting to put off his punishment for another day, Dick slipped on his overcoat and glasses. He would go practice with the band until morning. He had just finished his homework, so he didn't have to worry about that. Silently, he slipped out the window and down the driveway.

Ten minutes later, he was approaching the warehouse. From outside he could hear the band laughing. They were nice enough people and they were inseparable. They had been a band for years now, going all over the place, always together. None of them had a real home, so they were free. And, they were never alone. The Robin side of him kind of wished he and the team could be that close, but after tomorrow, he wouldn't even have a team.

Suicide pulled the collar of his jacket up before walking in so the new bruises on his neck wouldn't show. Then he casually strode in.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

"Hey, Suicide," Dan called happily, "You're here early!" The band members were all sitting around a large table playing poker and drinking beer, except killer, he had Vodka.

"Can I join?" Suicide asked casually. The members laughed.

"Sure kid, we were just about to start a new game," Mouth gestured to an empty chair. Suicide took his seat.

"So what are we playing for?"

"Well, we were playing on chores," Mouth said "and Rod here pretty much has to clean the whole warehouse!" He gestured to the scrawny keyboard player by his side, "But since you're here, we can play for real money. Well, that's assuming you've got some."

Dick smiled and shook his head. "I'm Dick freaking Grayson! Of course I have money."

"Well then, let's play!" Dan said happily.

Killer got up suddenly and walked away, Bone followed him with a shrug. Now it was just DJ, Rod, Dan, Mouth, and Suicide.

Dan shrugged, "C'mon, let's play.

Dick reached in his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "So how are we betting?"

Dan pulled out a new deck of cards, and Robin couldn't help but count the cards as he shuffled. He had been trained to notice everything, so he couldn't help it.

"We'll have a five, dollar Ante," Dan replied, meaning the cost to get your cards. Everyone put five dollars on the center of the table, also known as the pot, and received five cards in return. "We'll start with a Five-Card-Draw."

Suicide looked down at his cards, already knowing that he had a King of Spades, King of Diamond, Jack of Diamond, Five of Clubs, and Three of Diamond. It wasn't the best hand, but it wasn't bad either. He looked up at the other members as they start.

Rod 'Checks', symbolizing that he doesn't owe anything and that he isn't placing any money into the pot.

Mouth bet ten dollars. They were betting high tonight, especially since they had the chance to get money from a kid who has loads of it. Unfortunately for them, this kid isn't normal, and he isn't naive.

Continuing the game, DJ 'calls' (matching Mouth's bet) and puts ten dollars into the pot.

Dan raises ten dollars and puts twenty into the pot.

Now, Suicide calls and puts a twenty into the pot. His cards weren't bad, unlike Rod's and DJ's. Dick knows they aren't going to last.

As if hearing Dick's thoughts and proving him right, Rod folds and tosses his cards on the table, face down. He's out.

Mouth calls. The total bet is twenty dollars, but Mouth had already put in a ten, so he adds another ten to the pot.

DJ is the same as Mouth and calls, tossing ten dollars in.

The round of betting is over, and everyone still in the game sits square with the pot at twenty dollars in. The pot has one-hundred-and-five dollars in it. Now everyone has the chance to discard up to three cards. Mouth discards three cards, DJ only one, and Dan goes for two new cards. Keeping his two kings and hoping for a third, Suicide discards three cards. Dan hands out the new cards.

Dick looks down at his cards. Now he has three kings, a four, and an eight. The main thing is that he has three kings. He stops for a moment to think about the other players.

_'Mouth kept two cards, so he had a pair like me. By accidentally counting cards, I know he had two jacks. On top of that, he still only has two, he didn't get a third, so I'm beating him. DJ was trying for a straight or a flush, but he didn't get it, so he'll be folding soon. Then there is Dan. He rose in the beginning because he has three straight already. Fortunately, he didn't get a fourth, so I'm still ahead of him. And he only has queens.'_

The next round starts now. Mouth bets five more dollars.

DJ folds. _'Saw that coming.' _Suicide thinks slightly smugly.

Dan raises twenty dollars, making the total twenty-five dollars.

Suicide calls and pays out the twenty-five.

Mouth looks at his cards again and raises yet another twenty dollars.

Dan and Suicide both call on the twenty raise and the second round ends. For the second round, the pot gained one-hundred-and-forty dollars. With the two rounds combined, the winner receives two-hundred-and-forty-five dollars. Suicide looks to the others. Dan, Mouth, and he were the only ones left now.

At the same time, everyone showed their hands.

Mouth had The Jacks of Hearts and Diamonds, the Threes of Clubs and Spades, and he had the Ace of Hearts.

Dan had a good hand. He had three Queens, one of Hearts, Spades, and Diamonds, along with the Ace of Spades and the Seven of Spades.

Suicide had Three Kings, making him the winner. He had the King of Spades, of Diamonds, and of Clubs. He also had a Four of Clubs and an Eight of Hearts, but those were irrelevant.

Dan, Rod, DJ, and Mouth all looked at him with surprise. The way he had been playing, he hadn't let on what he had. He didn't raise or anything, instead he let others rise while he sat back and called every time.

Dan started laughing. "Well, you can play kid! Go on, everything in the pot is yours."

"I probably shouldn't take it," Dick argued.

"Why not? You won it fair and square."

Dick shook his head. "I didn't mean to, but I kind of counted the cards."

Dan laughed again. "Yeah right kid. It takes years to learn how to count cards. You honestly expect us to believe you can count at the age of thirteen? Yeah right. Just take it kid."

Suicide pointed to Rod. "He had an Eight of Clubs, Two of Hearts, Five of Diamonds, and Ace of Clubs, and Seven of Clubs. It's a bad hand if you ask me."

Rod's eyes went wide and Dan grabbed for the cards Rod had set on the table. Every one matched up.

"You are one strange kid. Remind me never to play power with you," Mouth asked of him. Suicide nodded.

"Is it really so strange compared to the rest of me?" Dan shook his head that it wasn't.

They played poker for a few more hours. Almost every time Dick won, but sometimes you just have to fold. After several hours, the game grew tired.

**Wednesday, December 17****th****… With the Band**

"Hey, so are you guys ready for some practice?" Mouth asked. The members sitting at the table nodded, and bone and Killer stood from the old puke green couch that had a little TV in front of it.

Suicide went to stand, but once he did, he was greeted with a major headache. His hands begun to tremble again, but he ignored it and shoved them in his pockets.

The band gathered at the little stage they had set up and grabbed their instruments. Suicide pulled a razor blade from his pocket and Dan grabbed his wrist. "What are you doing with that?"

Dick looked up at him. "I'm using it as my guitar pick."

Dan shook his head and let go of his wrist. "I've never heard anything so crazy. You'll cut your guitar strings."

"No I won't." Dan shrugged and went to sit by his drum set.

The band practiced for a few hours without any major flaws or mistakes, but after four hours, Dick's hands begun to shake uncontrollably. He found it harder and harder to play and concentrate. He begun to make mistakes, and Mouth and Dan were eyeing him nervously now.

"Hey, guys, let's take five," Mouth called and set his guitar down. The band dispersed and Dan and Mouth came up to Dick.

"Hey, Suicide, are you feeling all right?" Dan asked worriedly.

He nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," but his hands shook as he tried to put the razor back in his pocket. It took him several tries to get it in.

"Dude, your hands are shaking like an earthquake hit. And you don't look so good. You're pale." Mouth came and stood in front of him so he could see Dick's face. "Dick," he said quietly, "have you been taking drugs? Man that stuff…"

"No," Dick cut him off. "I promise I haven't been taking drugs."

"Well they would explain why you're so thin," Dan commented.

"I just haven't been eating well is all, but I'm fine, really." Dick appreciated their concern, but it was also unwanted.

"Well how long has it been since you've eaten?" Dan asked.

Dick was about to reply when Mouths hand came up and caught Dick's chin. He tilted Dick's head up, revealing the dark bruises that stretched around his neck. Dick quickly pulled away and lowered his eyes. He let his hair fall into his face, symbolizing his shame.

"Dick, what happened man?!" Dan asked in utter shock. DJ and Rod overheard and the rest of the band gathered. Dick let his head fall down further.

"N-nothing h-h-happened," he stuttered quietly.

"Dick, who did this to you? Was it Mr. Wayne? Is he hurting you?"

Dick looked up. "N-no. Bruce would never…"

"Then who?"

"Just some kids from school."

Mouth sighed deeply. "Maybe you should go home, Dick. Does Mr. Wayne know what's happened?"

"No. It just happened today."

"Then you need to tell him."

"Do you want a ride home?" Rod asked, "I have a car. I can take you."

"No I'm fine; I can make it on my own."

Now Dan sighed. "Alright Dick, go home. And take care of yourself. You trust Mr. Wayne, right?" Dick nodded. "Then go home and tell him what happened. You can come to practice tomorrow if you feel better. If not, it's okay to take the day off." Dick nodded and walked through the portal and onto the sidewalk of Gotham.

He looked back at the band. _'They're really nice, actually. They get a little drunk, sometimes, but their nice. Maybe even friends.' _ Dick Thought and continued on his way home. Once there, he shakily climbed up through the window and into bed. He was about to fall asleep when he heard the front door shut.

Panicked, Dick checked the time. It was 7:30 a.m. _'Crap. I'm going to be late for school if I don't hurry.' _He got dressed as fast as possible and grabbed his backpack. Skipping breakfast again and not bothering for a glass of water, he ran out the door and the whole way to school.

He got to school just as the gates closed. "No, wait!" He called out, but they had already shut him out. _'Great, now what!? Why do they even have a fence around a school?' _Dick begun to walk around the school. In one spot, he stopped.

There was a tree by the fence. He took off his jacket and tied it to his bag. The jacket would get snagged and would restrict his maneuverability if he kept it on. Next, he threw his backpack over and jumped into the tree. Once at the top of the tree, he found a slight problem. The fence was roughly ten feet straight across from him. The top of the fence included metal spikes, which would turn him into a _dead _shish-kabob. In order to get by, he had to jump upward and as far out as possible. He had to fly ten feet.

Dick reconsidered. Instead, he climbed down a ways, and then grabbed the topmost branch that would support him. He swung on it several times until he was swinging around the limb. As he swung upward, he let go and arched his back. He swung over the fence, clearing it by maybe an inch. He landed gracefully on the ground and let out a sigh of relief.

"Nicely done," he heard a voice say and looked up. Artemis was standing in front of him holding his bag. Once Dick looked up, she flinched, and Dick realized that without his jacket on, his bruises were painfully obvious.

"Uh, thanks," he said, and quickly took his bag and put his school-uniform jacket on.

"Where did you learn how to do that?"

"Circus Freak," he reminded her of his nick-name and walked by. He heard her slap herself on the forehead quietly. Dick cackled, then realized that it wasn't just a simple, quite chuckle. He used one of his signature Robin laughs. Realizing the mistake, he turned and smiled at Artemis.

Artemis was looking up at the rooftops. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"That laugh, it sounded like…" Dick had a confused look on his face. "Maybe I just imagined it."

Dick shrugged, gave one more charming smile, and headed off to class.

Dick managed through two periods without getting in trouble, which where P.E. and Math. It's when third came that his luck caught up to him.

"Alright everyone, take out your homework," the teacher said, and everyone started looking through their things. Dick did the same, but quickly realized he didn't have it. Now he remembered. He had done all of his work, but had left it on his desk this morning when he hurried off to school.

_'Dam, everything in my life is falling apart. I used to get everything done, and I used to do a lot more too. When did it go wrong?'_

As a result, Bruce was going to get five phone calls from five teachers, and a tardy call for being late that morning.

_'This fucking sucks,' _Dick thought as the day finally ended. He had made up only two assignments during lunch. As much as he hated to admit it, he was slipping. Things were falling apart.

A/N: This chapter took a lot of time and work, at least for me, I'm a slow writer. I mostly wrote it at night, so it also wasn't as good as I had hoped. Sorry, but I still liked it and I hope you guys did to!

Please R&R! It inspires me to put other things on hold for this!


	7. Chapter 6: Wednesday through Friday

Chapter 6: Wednesday through Friday

A/N: This is the last three days before the Battle of the Bands Begins! Dick's also going into his third day without eating or drinking anything. Hope you guys like it! And sorry for the late update; school related delays.

**Wednesday, December 17****th****… At Wayne Manor**

Dick had walked all the way home again, this time with no complications. He tiredly and shakily walked up the front steps and opened the front door. Like the last time Bruce received a phone call from a teacher, he was waiting. Dick looked up, hands still shaking, and saw Bruce glaring down at him. Bruce held out a bag to Dick.

_'This is it. He doesn't want me anymore. He's sending me away.'_

Dick's hands shook so badly that he nearly dropped the bag as it was given to him. Bruce pulled car keys out of his pocket.

"Let's go," he said, and Dick quietly followed him out the door. He was still dressed in his school uniform, but it didn't matter. He would be given the same clothes as every other kid where he was going.

The drive was spent in silence, no one said a word. Bruce kept his thoughts to himself. _'I just need to scare him so he follows orders. He has to pay more attention at school, and he can't be sneaking out every night. He'll beg me to let him stay before he gets out of the car, and I'll grudgingly give him another chance. I wouldn't actually send him back; I just need to remind him that I can.'_

It was indeed a cruel punishment.

As they arrived at the detention center, Bruce glanced at Dick. Dick only stared out at the bland building, not a tear on his face or a word on his lips. Bruce stopped the car across the lot. The doors to the center were roughly thirty feet away. There were other cars here, so no one noticed them.

Bruce turned to Dick. He was going to ask Dick if he wanted to go back, and then he expected to hear pleading. But instead, he was surprised as the passenger door slid open and then shut. Bruce stared with wide eyes.

Dick kept his eyes on the concrete and moved forward at a steady pace. He stared down with unseeing eyes. He didn't care anymore, and he had known this day was coming for a while now. At first his eyes were dim and more gray than blue, but after walking about ten feet, they begun to shine with tears.

But Dick continued to walk by the cars and towards the seemingly lifeless building. A tear rolled down his cheek by the fifteenth step. He glanced upwards to see that he was half way there. Now he was closer to his new life than he was to Bruce. By now, he suspected that Bruce had driven away.

Dick was caught unexpectedly by the wrist and was pulled into a tight embrace. He didn't struggle or shy away from it, instead he continued to stare blankly. Still, only one lonely tear had slipped down his left cheek.

"Dick," Bruce whispered into his dark ebony hair, "I'm so sorry. I don't want you to go." Bruce pulled back a little so he could rest his lips on Dick's forehead. He loved his son, and he didn't want him to go anywhere.

Dick closed his eyes and finally let the tears slip silently down his face. He felt the wetness of Bruce's own tears as he buried his face into Dick's dark field of hair. Bruce pulled back and wrapped his arm around the boy's shoulder so that he could lead him back to the car. He opened the passenger door and let Dick clime in before going to his own place on the driver's side. He started the car and they begun towards the manor.

Bruce glanced over at his son when they were half way to the manor. It was a good thing that they were in slow traffic, because Bruce suddenly hit the brakes. The car behind them honked and Bruce locked his eyes straight ahead as he again started the car into motion.

Tensely and without looking over, Bruce asked, "Dick, what happened to your neck?" Now Dick understood why Bruce had stopped when he looked over. Dick's large strangling burses were visible.

"Nothing," Dick whispered quietly and looked out of his window. Bruce glanced at him and Dick tried to once again hide the dark purple marks that had begun to yellow on his skin.

Bruce parked at the Manor and the two got out of the car. Glumly, Dick walked towards the manor. Bruce closed the door behind them.

"Dick?" He called, but his ward only walked on towards the staircase.

"I'm tired," was all he said as he continued to walk steadily away from his mentor.

_'I'll leave him be for now,' _Bruce thought. _'But we will talk about the bruising later.'_

Bruce waited thirty minutes before going up to check on Dick. To his surprise, he was lying in bed; he hadn't jumped out of the window. Silently, Bruce closed the door.

_'Tomorrow,' _Bruce thought, '_He has to collect his things from Mount Justice.'_

**Thursday, December 18****th****… At Mount Justice**

The team was sitting and watching some old movies. They were board out of their minds.

"Maybe we can invite Robin over," M'gann tried timidly, "He's always fun and we haven't seen him all week. He didn't even go on the mission with us…" She received glares from Superboy, Artemis, and Wally while Zatanna shrugged and Kaldur sent her a meaningful glance.

Kaldur was becoming worried. He had been watching the news in Gotham lately to see if he could get a glimpse of Robin, just to see if he was all right. But Batman had been working alone all week. Robin didn't appear once, so Kaldur was worried. He might be injured. He was about to relay this information to the team when a familiar sound echoed through the caverns.

_Robin B-01, _the computer announced loudly. Artemis, Wally, and Superboy didn't look as the young hero emerged, but continued to watch the screen. Artemis quietly mumbled "Speak of the Devil."

Robin was dressed in his usual civilian black jacket and wore his dark sunglasses. He stopped and looked at the team, only to find that three of them were giving him the cold shoulder. He turned and walked toward the living chambers.

Kaldur stood and walked into his path. "Robin, it is good to see you, my friend. Why…"

He was cut off as Robin interrupted him. "I'm not Robin." He said simply and walked past him. Now all the other members looked his way as he disappeared into his chambers.

It only took him a few seconds to grab his extra clothes and stuff them into a bag. Besides the extra outfits, he didn't have much in the room. The only thing he had was a picture that he had tacked to the wall. It was a picture of him and his team. They were all in their civilian casual clothes, and Robin stood in the center with his arms around Wally and Kaldur. Conner smiled down at him, and Zatanna was hugging him from behind. He had been given the picture for Christmas, and it was the only thing on his bare walls. He un-tacked it and placed it in his pocket.

Twenty seconds after he had gone in the room, he was walking back out. Kaldur was the only one by the door while the others still sat on the couch.

"Robin, what are you doing?" Kaldur asked. "What do you mean you are not Robin?"

"Just what I said Kaldur, I'm not Robin anymore, and I'm not part of this team."

The girls gasped and everyone stood and ran over to him.

"Robin, what do you mean? Of course you are a member of the team. This last week has been hard on our friendship, but you still…" M'gann was cut off as Dick shook his head.

"I'm not Robin anymore, Batman fired me," the team gasped again, "and I'm not needed anyways. You apparently did fine on your own mission. You don't need me as much as I…" **_need you_**_. _He almost said.

"As much as you don't need us?" Artemis continued for him. Robin cleared his head.

"Y-yeah. That's what I was saying."

"Well, if you don't need us, then I'm sure we can manage without you," Wally said angrily.

"School isn't hard enough to need a team, Kid Mouth. I don't even need friends at school."

"Well fine then!" Wally shouted. "You can go on ahead and be a loner for all I care! We've been friends forever, but if you want to sit all ALONE in your big EMPTY house and CRY, then FINE! Better yet, why don't you just go hang yourself!?" Dick flinched and everything in the room froze. No one breathed in fear of breaking the friendships that were already hanging by a thread.

"D-dude, I didn't mean it, I…"

"I've thought about it," Robin said low and darkly. Everyone held their breaths yet again.

_'Thought about what?' _Wally thought with deep concern. _'Did he mean, he's thought… about suicide?'_

Robin set into motion and soon stood in front of the zeta beams.

"Goodbye," was all he said as he disappeared.

The team stood for another moment until Superboy decided to punch a wall.

"Dam it Robin!" He shouted as he made a deep crater that shook the wall and cavern. "What the hell is he thinking!? You just never know!"

"Conner, calm down," Kaldur ordered. "As I'm sure you're all aware of, things just became very dangerous. Not only are we at the risk of never seeing Robin again, but there is also the risk…"

"Of seeing him in a coffin," Artemis continued. Everyone looked at her.

"Who even cares," Conner said quietly and begun to walk away. The way he said it, it was very obvious that Conner was just as worried as the rest of them.

"I think you know who cares," Zatanna said to the retreating Superboy, "you do."

Superboy stopped and turned back to her and the others. "So what are we going to do about it?"

Everyone looked to each other, and then looked down. Suddenly, M'gann asked, "Conner, why didn't you want Robin to join the band?"

"Because he's Robin," he said simply.

"So you hate him?" Wally asked worriedly.

"No," Conner said sternly, "It's just," he sighed. "He's Robin, so why would he even want to be in our band?"

"He's our friend, so why wouldn't he want to be in our band?" M'gann asked in confusion.

"Because he can do better. He's Robin! He can probably play ten times as good as us, and he can probably play any instrument. Compared to him, we're babies banging on pots and pans."

The team stared at Conner. None of them had thought of it that way. Not only would they be holding Robin back, but the rest of them would look like fools next to Robin. On stage, they would look like the idiots who happen to have a professional friend. None of them had ever heard him play, but Conner was right. Robin could do anything.

Conner had been jealous, and now that he pointed this all out to the others, they were a little jealous too. Kaldur would be able to work past the jealousy, but it was still there.

"And he still betrayed us," Wally pointed out. "He's still going against us at the battle of the bands." The team nodded. They were going to see Robin at the battle. They couldn't help but wonder now, who will win? And how will it affect Robin's choices?

"Do we actually think he's going to kill himself?" Artemis asked. "Robin is strong, and he's lived through a lot of terrible things in Gotham."

"More than you know," Wally added. "He's been through some really rough personal stuff too."

Artemis nodded. "Alright, so… he's too smart and strong to actually kill himself, especially over us. He still has other friends and a family, I'm sure. Even if he had nothing, he would look for something to hold on to. I don't think he would actually ever kill himself."

The team considered this. "You're probably right," Zatanna said, "But that doesn't mean he's okay. He's hurting, can't you tell?"

"I can feel it," M'gann added.

"We're all hurting," Artemis said.

"Now that's a bit selfish," Zatanna challenged her. The girls glared at each other intently.

"That's enough. There is nothing we can do at the moment," Kaldur reminded them. "We must wait until the battle."

*Back to Robin*

Meanwhile, Robin arrived at Wayne Manor after his walk from the zeta tube. He went straight to his room and started on his make-up work. Tomorrow is the last day of school for the next two weeks. After that, it will be the winter vacation. But tomorrow is also the day before the battle of the Bands.

That night, after completing his work, he snuck out once again to practice with the band. Again, he stayed out all night and arrived home just as Bruce left for work.

Dick rushed to school, this time making it to class as the bell rang. He turned in all of his work for late grades. It meant he would pass all of his classes.

The morning was easy, and Dick was happy to have his work in. It was at lunch time that Dick felt depression sink in.

Once Dick received his lunch, he looked around the room. All of the tables were full because no one wanted to sit outside in the freezing temperature. The lonely table Dick usually sat at was now occupied by chatting teenage girls.

Grudgingly, Dick went to sit out in the cold. As he exited, Bradley, the previously mentioned football star, slammed the door on Dick, painfully knocking him to the side and spilling hot tomato soup on him.

"Oh, my bad, let me help you up," Bradley said as he grabbed Dick by the collar of his jacket. He pulled him up, but before Dick could get his feet set solidly on the ground, Bradley let go and Dick fell back to the floor.

"Hey, what are you doing? Leave him alone," a voice said, but Dick didn't bother to see who it was. He could hear loud laughing in the room behind him, but he told himself that he didn't care. He lied.

Dick stood as quickly as he could, then tried to regain his posture, and casually walked out of the cafeteria with a straight back and tomato-soaked hair.

He rounded a corner and sat down on one of the blue benches in the courtyard. There was no one else there.

_'Bruce was right, nobody needs me. And Wally was right too; I'm all alone.'_

Back inside, Artemis watched as the small boy walked calmly out into the cold. She turned to Bradley again and followed up on her previous statement. "What gives you the right to pick on people?! Why don't you just pick on someone your own size?! Oh wait, I know why! Because you may have large muscles, but you don't know how to fight. You punch hard, but you punch like a girl!"

"You are a girl, nimrod," Bradley retorted.

"You're more of a girl than I'll ever be!" Artemis shot back, her aim hit as precisely as it always did.

"Look, I have no problem hitting a sass-mouth girl like you."

With anger quickly boiling, Bradley made a lunge, but Artemis stepped aside and he slipped on the tomato juice. A teacher came up to the boy on the floor. "Mr. Bradley Clayton, you go directly to the principal's office. There is no fighting on school grounds." Angrily, Bradley stood, glared at Artemis, and walked away. The teacher turned to Artemis. "Ms. Crock, You didn't throw any punches, so I will not send you to the office. But, I suggest you avoid these types of situations." Artemis nodded and the teacher turned to follow Bradley.

Now Artemis walked out of the cafeteria and into the direction that Dick had gone. She was about to round a corner when she heard quiet crying. Quietly, Artemis peeked around the corner and saw Dick Grayson on the bench with his knees up to his chest. His hair covered his eyes, but she could see silent tears on his check. He was trembling in the cold, and his hair and clothes were fairly wet. Artemis felt a rain drop and looked up to the sky. The dark clouds began to pour.

_'Great, now we're both soaking wet in the freezing cold.' _Artemis looked once again at the small shivering boy. _'Doesn't he have any friends who are looking for him? Why didn't he have any friends willing to stand up to Bradley?'_

But she had stood up for him, even though she didn't really know the kid. Everyone just assumed he was the happy, charming young ward of Bruce Wayne. But maybe there was something more. Seeing him sitting there, he looked utterly depressed.

_'Maybe I should go talk to him. But he doesn't know me.'_

She watched as the boy reached into his pocket and pulled something out. He fingered it nervously, and Artemis wondered what it was. She understood once she saw the boy lift his sleeve and slide the razor across his skin. Artemis's eyes widened and she moved forward.

Dick looked up at her as she came close. She sternly grabbed his wrist with one hand and the small blade with the other. She threw the blade hard and it went well over the school fence. She turned back and looked at his arm.

He had started the cut at on the inside of his elbow and had drawn down to his wrist. The cut stretched in one straight line and was about four inches long. Blood seeped from the cut and blended with the rain that fell on his arm. Artemis looked at him, but Dick still had his head down.

Artemis suddenly felt really bad for him. He was out here alone, and no one had come to comfort him. He didn't have any friends.

_'But I came.' _With a sad look on her face, Artemis pulled Dick into a hug. _'He just wants someone to love him.'_

She only held him for a minute because the rain turned quickly into hail. "Come on, let's go inside." He nodded and Artemis pulled him into one of the abandoned hallways. From there, she stealthily made it to the Girls locker room without being seen.

Luckily, the girl Gym teachers had this period as their lunch period, so there was no one in the room. Unfortunately, the girl's locker room was locked.

Artemis let out a groan, and Dick sighed. He reached into his pocket and Artemis caught his wrist.

"How many razors do you have?"

"I only had the one," he replied and pulled his hand from his pocket. He held a paperclip.

Artemis laughed a little. "What are you going to do, pick the lock?"

Dick smiled charmingly, and Artemis realized something. _'He looks so happy and cute when he smiles like that. But he doesn't feel that way at all. I'll give him this; he's one damn good actor.' _Artemis heard a surprising click as Dick unlocked the door._ 'And he has SOME skills. He also cleared that fence the other day, and that took guts.'_

Artemis grabbed the boy by the wrist again and pulled him into the room. She walked over to her locker and put in the combination. Once she opened her locker, she pulled out a boy's school uniform pants and extra girl's jacket.

"Why do you have a boy's pants?" He tried not to laugh.

"I don't like wearing skirts every day, so I keep a pair of uniform pants in here. The Jacket belongs to my friend Chelsea. She's really small, so I think it'll fit on you. And no one will be able to tell it's a girls jacket; again, because you're so small." Dick frowned and took the clothes.

Without hesitation, Dick slipped off his soaked school jacket and his damp collared uniform shirt, leaving only a semi-dry, white undershirt. Artemis blushed a little and looked away, but her eyes fell back on him. His burses on his neck were a vivid purple and yellow. She didn't like to see that, so her eyes wandered down.

When he had his jacket on, his arms had looked thin, but now she could see that in comparison to the rest of his small body, his arms were thick and muscular. She looked at his stomach and surprisingly saw that he was well built. His damp shirt stuck to his skin, revealing a six pack of abs. Artemis didn't expect him to have that kind of muscle, but looking at him now, she could see couldn't help but stare.

She stopped and wondered why he hadn't put the jacket on yet. She looked up and saw that he had a crooked smile on his face and one eyebrow raised questioningly.

"Is there something you like?" He asked jokingly, and Artemis averted her eyes and blushed deeply. Dick made a movement to put on the jacket, but Artemis stopped him.

"Wait, I don't want you to get blood on my friend's jacket." Dick looked down at his arm.

"Oh, yeah, right." He had almost forgotten that he had a large bleeding cut on his arm.

Artemis looked through the coach's things and found the first aid kit while Dick switched his paints. She had Dick sit down on one of the wooden benches while she cleaned and wrapped the cut.

"Did it hurt like you wanted it to?"

Dick shook his head. "I've felt a lot worse pain than that. It was only a little sting, and that's all I expected, but…" Dick paused.

"But what?"

"But… somehow… seeing my own blood… it helped." He said slowly.

Artemis didn't say anything; instead she focused on finishing his bandages.

"You don't like me, you know," Dick said, changing the subject. Artemis looked up at him.

"What gave you that idea? I-I don't dislike you, Dick…"

"That's not what I mean." Artemis looked at him in confusion. "If you knew who I really was, you wouldn't like me."

"Why, are you evil? Does Dick Grayson have dirty secrets?" She asked jokingly.

Dick shook his head. "I have plenty of secrets. Not so many of them dirty though. No, I wouldn't consider myself as evil. As a matter of fact, most people would call me the opposite of evil."

"Then what's not to like?"

Dick shrugged and stood. "You just wouldn't want me as a friend."

Artemis considered for a second. "Dick, I think you're a nice kid. I have no reason to dislike you. My standards in a friend are that they are good, and that they are there when I need them most. I can see you like that, Dick. I want to be your friend."

Dick kept quiet and slipped on the jacket. He walked by her and out of the locker room. She followed close on his heels. "Artemis," he stopped and the bell rang. "Artemis, I don't need friends." And just like that, he had slipped back into the dark, his happy smile gone. Artemis saw his sadness return.

_'He needs friends; he just doesn't know how to have them.'_ "Dick, before you go, if you want friends, you should look for them. And, you need to tell them. Tell them that you need a friend." Dick didn't say anything, but instead he continued to walk. _'He's wrong. He does need friends. Good ones.' _

Artemis turned and trotted off to English class.

A/N: **_Special… Please read…_**

**To ****_RJG Lover_**: First, thanks for the reviews, and I'm really glad you like the story. Can you see if you can turn on PM? You have it disabled at the moment.

**To All: ****_RJG Lover_**** asked me a good question… Why is Dick not in the hospital from dehydration?**

I know that most people die after three days without water, but it works better for my story if he can last a week. Besides, he's Dick Grayson, and this IS a Fiction… so I thought it would be okay to bend the rules a bit. It makes things a LOT easier and more interesting, and it isn't against the rules of Fiction. PLEASE! Don't hate me for defying the rules! If you a lot of you complain about it, and if it really bothers you, I'll change it and follow the rules. Okay? Just tell me if it bothers you too much.

A/N: Hope you liked it! Please R&R!


	8. Chapter 7: First Saturday of Battle

Chapter 7: First Saturday of Battle the Bands

A/N: This is the sixth day of Robin's fast. But he's also gone twice as long as any person should be able to go without water. Needless to say, it doesn't end well. Hope you guys enjoy it though!

Songs included:

Bring Me to Life; by Evanescence

Through the Fire and the Flame; by Dragon Force

Alright; Enjoy! Thanks for reading!

**Saturday, December 20****th****… Gotham Docks 10 P.M.**

Suicide swung open the back doors to the van that was "the Band's Van." Mouth exited from the driver's seat and Dan from the passenger's door. Soon, the other members joined them; they had ridden in Rod's little four-door coupe. They unloaded their equipment.

"Hey, Suicide, why don't you go find a place for us to set up?"Dan asked. Dick nodded and went to explore the large warehouse.

The way this battle seemed to work is that instead of there being a stage, every band set up in a different spot. All along the walls where sets of equipment. Some people he their areas set along the outside of the warehouse and in the areas around. A couple bands had even set up on the wooden peers that stretched out over the water.

Suicide walked on through the cold night, searching for the perfect spot, and maybe something more.

He glanced over and saw what he expected, but wished was not there. He saw his Te-, EX-Team set up by a wall on the outside of the warehouse. He turned his back, faced away, and in his mind, was being a coward. Promptly, he turned towards them again and saw exactly what he needed.

Above the team was an open rectangle in the side of the warehouse, and a wooden platform stretched from the opening. It was large enough for the band to fit on it, and the support beams looked stable, but there was only one way to be sure.

He walked towards them, his gaze locked straight. Several members of the team looked up and stopped their busy movements. Soon, the whole team was watching him as he approached. Some of them glared, and Suicide raised his eyebrows with a crooked smile in response.

"Don't mind me," he said as he walked passed them, and they watched him in confusion as he walked straight to the wall. He cackled at their faces mixed with anger and confusion. "Sorry, but you're under the last place to set up." He was faking happiness again, and as always, he was doing a splendid job.

"Under?" Superboy asked.

As an answer, Robin clasped one of the support beams and hoisted himself up with ease. He easily climbed onto the top terrace where the window was and disappeared over the edge. He heard a quiet huff below him and a few murmurs.

He checked the wood, it was all fairly new. It didn't seem to be broken or snapped in anywhere, so it should do. He could easily see everyone set up inside and half the people set up outside, so it was the perfect spot. The whole warehouse had three levels, but the top levels were collapsed. The window was on the third floor level.

Without hesitation, he ran to the edge of the platform and jumped out into space. He heard a few screams, and remembered that most people there didn't know who he was. He was also surprised to find that the team thought a lot less of him now; he heard Kaldur shout to Superboy an order to catch the falling boy.

Dick saw this as a problem. SB's arms were sturdy, and if he tried to catch him, it would most likely break his ribs. Dick had been planning to tumble lightly into a standing position, but now he decided a quick new course.

Superboy appeared bellow him with his arms out, and Robin reached forward, let his hands rest on Conner's shoulders, and then flipped backwards over him; landing lightly on the ground a few feet behind him.

"Really guys? I wasn't going to face plant, I can handle myself, and I don't need your protection. If SB had caught me, he would've just…" He didn't finish because he found his vision blurring, and he swayed a little. His throat was suddenly dry, and everything was light, as if he were on drugs.

_'Shit,' _he thought, and turned away from his team. He staggered away, leaving them with worried faces as their eyes followed him.

He staggered towards where the band was waiting for him to come back. About half way there he straightened and stopped staggering. His head still hurt, but it was manageable, so he would make due.

He collected his band and quietly took them to the platform.

"Uh, Suicide, I don't mean to pop your bubble, but, there's no room here."

"Rod dude's right, man," Mouth agreed, "All the space here is taken up."

"Hand me the generator," was all Suicide said. He took it and held tightly onto the metal bar that acted as a handle for the heavy machinery. It weighed roughly one-hundred-and-eighty pounds because it was a well-built portable generator. With some effort, he grabbed one of the beams of the platform and hoisted it up.

"Suicide man, you are crazy. Now I know why you chose that name," Dan said with an impressed look on his face. Being Robin, he could curl one-sixty-five on each arm, even though he himself weighed around one-hundred pounds.

But the trick with the generator was not letting go of it, and still being able to pull him-self and the generator up with one arm. Once he pulled himself up several feet, he found a good position and lifted it with his legs. It only took him ten seconds to get onto the first terrace of the platform.

He was working on getting onto the second platform when the generator suddenly felt weightless. He pulled it from the second terrace to the third and final platform as if it were a balloon.

Once up he glanced down and saw that M'gann's eyes were glowing green. She had obviously helped lift the generator.

Bellow, Dan shrugged and climbed onto the second terrace, Killer followed and stopped on the first. Mouth handed every piece of equipment up one at a time and it was passed from Killer to Dan and finally to Suicide. Soon, the whole thing was set up, and Mouth lifted Rod and passed him up as well, then the rest or the band clambered up behind him. Through his sunglasses, Dick glanced down again at M'gann and saw that most of the team was giving her glares, except for Kaldur who set a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

_'They're having a mental conversation. Probably giving M'gann a hard time for helping me.'_ Robin sent a silent thank you, though he hadn't expected M'gann to glance up at him as he did. She smiled a little, and Dick turned his back as the rest of the team followed her gaze.

Suicide suddenly heard cheering and a band playing. The judges had made it through all the bands inside and were well on their way with the outside bands. Within the hour, they would be next.

*The Team*

M'gann watched out of the corner of her eye as Robin arrived with his band. Surprisingly, they were all grown men. Some of them well built. One of them was small and another had a bit of a beer belly, though his arms were still fairly built. None of them as actually really cute, and he was probably twenty years old, and he had sunglasses. Beards and mustaches where included on some faces.

It looked like a mix between a biker gang and a band with a couple of them wearing black leather jackets. One in particular had tattoos all along his arms and a gruff face.

Strangely enough, Robin fit in perfectly. He wore a long overcoat and dark glasses. His hair was black and messy, like always. But he also had this vive, and he was frowning the whole time. Robin was one of the few people that could mask his emotions exceedingly well from Miss Martian, but even so, she could pick up a dark vive; anyone could.

_'It might be part of the act,' _M'gann thought to herself, _'He might just be matching his new look.' _Even so, it kind of scared her.

She watched as the band questioned where they were going to set up. Then, without hesitation, Robin grabbed at the generator and clambered up the structure.

"Suicide man, you are crazy. Now I know why you chose that name," one of Robin's band members said. M'gann thought on what he had called Robin.

_'Suicide? So, is that Robin's stage name? Why would he choose a name like that? Besides the fact that he's crazy enough to carry a generator straight up.'_

M'gann refocused on him as Robin… or Suicide… begun to pull the generator up to the next terrace.

_'It has to weigh nearly two-hundred pounds! He's going to dislocate his arm if he isn't careful.' _With an inward sigh, M'gann decided that she would lend him a hand. She activated her powers and levitated the generator just enough for it to appear weightless to Robin.

_'M'gann, what are you doing?!'_ Superboy yelled through the mind link.

_'Obviously, she's being a good sport and helping Robin with the equipment, like the rest of us should probably do,' _Zatanna said with a bit of sass.

_'He can do it himself,' _Artemis cut in.

_'I-I'm sorry, but I didn't want to see him get hurt. Wally, you feel the same way, don't you?'_ M'gann asked. She suddenly glanced up as she felt a wave of gratitude. She caught Robin looking at her, although he didn't smile. Still, she grinned a little at him; she wanted him to know that she didn't hate him. Robin turned his back as the rest of the team looked up in order to see what M'gann was looking at.

Wally huffed. _'He can take care of himself. Even if he broke his arm, he wouldn't be dead, and he also wouldn't be able to play.'_

With that, Kaldur glared at him. _'Kid Flash, how could you think something so cruel?'_

_'Seriously, does anyone here have a chance of winning with him here? No!' _Wally shot back with a glare. Kaldur dropped out of the mental link; he couldn't take any more of this.

M'gann was hurt that people were mad at her for wanting to help. It was just like the first mission with the team. _'Wally,' _she asked pleadingly.

Wally glared at her for a second, but he lost his edge and smiled. _'Hey, I could never stay mad at you babe.'_

_'I could,' _Conner thought, earning him a glare from Kid Flash.

M'gann looked over at a band that was playing next to them. So far, none of the bands had been especially great; they were good, but not amazing. But the band that played now had force and they didn't miss a beat. They were singing a particularly strong song called "Down with the Sickness" By a band called 'Disturbed'. It was too strong for M'gann to like it much, but Superboy and Wally enjoyed it enough. It was vile though, but M'gann had come prepared to hear songs that she would normally never listen to. She wasn't as sensitive as to let angry feelings in songs hurt her. She wasn't weak, despite what some people thought.

They had two people singing, and the band itself had eight members. They were all nineteen to twenty-seven years old. There were two who looked over the age of twenty-five, but the others were younger looking. They concluded the song, and the judges moved on. The band probably got a good score because they were talented.

M'gann quickly realized that the Judges were stopping in front of the team's band. It was their turn.

Everyone got in their positions, their instruments close at hand.

M'gann and Artemis were the first two to play. M'gann let her fingers glide over keys on her keyboard while Artemis raised her bow and pulled it across the strings of a violin. She remembered how her mother had taught her to play violin a few months ago. She had to admit, it was cool.

Then Zatanna joined in with her voice…

**_How can you see into my eyes… like open doors? Leading you down into my core… where I've become so numb._**

Here, Kaldur played the Distortion Guitar, while Conner beat as lightly as he could on the drums.

**_Without a soul… my spirit's sleeping somewhere cold. Until you find it there and lead… it, back… home._**

They stopped and let silence ring for a moment. M'gann stopped and picked up a Violin so she could play with Artemis. Then, as a team, they all played; Wally joined in on the Electric Bass, and he sung as Zatanna's partner in voice. Here is the Chorus, and the Band plays at full force.

_(Wake me up!)_

**Wake me up inside!**

(I can't wake up!)

_**Wake me up inside!**_

_(Save me!)_

_**Call my name and save me from the dark…**_

_(Wake me up!)_

_**Bid my blood to run!**_

_(I can't wake up!)_

_**Before I come undone!**_

_(Save me!)_

_**Save me from the nothing I've become!**_****

For a moment, Kaldur is the only one playing. Then they all come back in, but not at full force.

**__**_  
__**Now that I know what I'm without… you can't just leave me. Breathe into me and… make me real.  
Bring me… to life…**_

Again, Kaldur signals the change in verses, and the Band proceeds head on.

**__**

_(Wake me up!)_

_**Wake me up inside!**_

_(I can't wake up!)_

_**Wake me up inside!**_

_(Save me!)_

_**Call my name and save me from the dark…**_

_(Wake me up!)_

_**Bid my blood to run!**_

_(I can't wake up!)_

_**Before I come undone!**_

_(Save me!)_

_**Save me from the nothing I've become!**_

**_Bring me to life._**_  
(I've been living a lie, there's nothing inside!)  
__**Bring me to life.**_

___**Frozen… inside without your touch, without your love, darling!  
Only... you are the life among the dead!**___

All this time I can't believe I couldn't see!  
Kept in the dark but you were there in front of me!

___**I've been sleeping a thousand years it seems!  
Got to open my eyes to everything!**_

**__**_Without a thought, without a voice, without a soul!  
Don't let me die here…  
There must be something more!_

**_Bring… me… to… life!_**

_(Wake me up!)_

_**Wake me up inside!**_

_(I can't wake up!)_

_**Wake me up inside!**_

_(Save me!)_

_**Call my name and save me from the dark...**_

_(Wake me up!)_

_**Bid my blood to run!**_

_(I can't wake up!)_

_**Before I come undone!**_

_(Save me!)_

_**Save me from the nothing I've become!**_

_(Bring me to life…)  
__**I've been living a lie, there's nothing inside!**__  
(Bring me to life!) _

Here, M'gann returns to her keyboard and slowly, one at a time, the instruments stop playing until only Artemis and M'gann are left. Moments later, they too quiet to a still silence.

The silence lasts all of three seconds before there is immense cheering and smiles from the whole team.

_'We did well?' _M'gann asks.

Kaldur nodded and the cheers slowly fade away as the Judges demand attention.

"Well," A male Judge begins, "Since there's no other bands… you guys rock on and we'll…" He was interrupted by someone clearing their throat overhead. The judge looks up to see Robin's band starring downward at him. The Judge laughs hysterically along with the rest of the crowd. As a response, Robin flashes a smile that could be seen brightly from miles away and holds a fist up high in the symbol of Rock.

The Judge nodes, "All right, go on and play, whenever you're ready." Robin nods in return and turns to one of the band members. In response, lights flicker on.

^Suicide's POV^

I signal to DJ and he flicks on the bright lights I had set up. I turn to the crowd before me, and fireworks start going off.

"We!" I start forcefully, and the band strikes a strong cord. "ARE!" I continue, and I strike another note with them. Out of the corner of my eye, I see KF holding a bucket and he looks to Conner. SB smiles evilly, and I think to myself, '_That can't be good.' _I continue, still one eye on them. "SUICIDE DEATH NOTE!"

With a blinding speed, Wally dashes forwards and jumps up the structure I'm standing on. So fast that I'm sure I'm the only one who can see him, he dumps the contents of the bucket above my head and is back by SB's side before the contents hit me.

When it does come, I recognize it immediately. _'Fake blood, real original.' _I'm completely soaked, but I nod to the band and they start playing anyways. I have twenty seconds before I join in, so I take the time to turn this prank back around on them.

I lift my fist and hold it strongly in the air; the crowd goes wild. I even take a moment to turn to my ex-team and hold both my middle fingers out at them. Wally rolls his eyes and the crowd laughs. I place my hands on the guitar.

Suddenly, I remember my dream, and the guitar looks like a thing of beauty. Streaks of red roll down it; the red is vivid on the sleek white surface.

As Mouth concludes the intro of the song with the Acoustic Guitar, I join in on the Overridden Distortion.

I don't mess up, but I quickly realize that it's much harder to play with fake blood in your eyes and your grip on the guitar slippery. I have to pluck the strings harder so that I don't mess up. And my knuckles are white as I hold the neck of the guitar tightly. If the strings slip, I'll mess up, so I have to keep a firm grasp due to the slick fake blood.

After about half a minute of playing like this, I have a moment to relax as I sing. The nice thing about this song, I had a part that mostly stops playing for when I sing, and that I play when the lyrics are on hold.

Now, the sound of the guitar in my hand dies and my voice begins…

**_On a cold winter morning… in a time before the light…  
In flames of death's eternal reign we ride towards the fight…  
When the darkness has fallen down… and the times are tough alright…  
The sound of evil laughter falls around the world tonight._**

Fighting hard… fighting on for the steel through the wastelands evermore…  
The scattered souls… will feel the hell… bodies wasted on the shores…  
On the blackest plains… in hell's domain …we watch them as they go…  
In fire and pain now once again we know!

So now we fly ever free… we're free before the thunderstorm…  
On towards the wilderness our quest carries on.

I had wanted to sing this song for the battle. I had thought it was perfect at the time because it reminded me of the team. I wanted them to know that I still thought our journey would continue. Until now, I always thought we would make it past our current situation.

**_Far beyond the sundown… far beyond the moonlight…  
Deep inside our hearts and all our souls!_**

So far away… we wait for the day…  
For the light source so wasted and gone…  
We feel the pain… of a lifetime lost in a thousand day…  
Through the fire and the flames we carry on!

I really thought we would find a way to stay friends. I thought we would carry on; that we would stick together until our mission was over. But I couldn't think of that right now, so instead I play the guitar like there's no tomorrow for about thirty seconds before continuing with the lyrics…

**_As the red day is dawning… and the lightning cracks the sky…  
They'll raise their hands to the heavens above with resentment to their eyes._**

**_Running back through the mid morning light… there's a burning in my heart…  
We're banished from a time in a fallen land to a life beyond the stars._**

In your darkest dreams… see to believe… our destiny this time…  
And endlessly… we'll all be free tonight!

I wouldn't be free. I can't shake this feeling that they hate me. I'm trapped with this aching feeling. I'm not free, and I don't know what my destiny holds anymore. I thought it was a team, but I was wrong.

**__**

And on the wings of a dream… so far beyond reality…  
All alone in desperation now the time has gone.

**_Lost inside you'll never find… lost within my own mind…  
Day after day this misery must go on!_**

My misery must go on. They'll never know what I'm thinking. They'll never know how it hurts, I'm lost in my own mind. Lost in my lonely mind.

**_So far away we wait for the day…  
For the light source so wasted and gone…  
We feel the pain… of a lifetime lost in a thousand days…  
Through the fire and the flames… we carry on!_**

We go for twenty seconds of playing before quieting and becoming less intense as I sing…

**_Wha-o-o!_**

My woes poured out, and my singing was filled with agony.

**_Whao-o-oh! _**

Anyone could hear that I was crying rather than singing.

**_Whao-o-oh!_**

But at the same time it sounded better.

**_Wha-o-o! _**

It carried emotion.

**_Whao-o-oh!_**

Emotion is something that some people seem to lack.

**_Whao-o-oh!_**

Here is the longest instrumental in the song. It literally lasts two whole minutes. The song itself is over seven minutes long. Halfway through, my fingers start to bleed. I've always been good at finding the right proportion of strength for playing, but now, with the fake blood, my skin split on every finger. The fake blood mixed with the real blood, and it stung, but I continued to play flawlessly. By the end of the second minute though, I can feel bone touching the strings as I play. For this song, I couldn't play with a pick. Instead, individual fingers plucked simultaneously in some parts and with milliseconds in between other notes. It was a challenge, to say the least.

**_Now here we stand with their blood on our hands…  
We fought so hard now can we understand?_**

**_I'll break the seal of this curse if I possibly can…  
For freedom of every man!_**

**_So far away we wait for the day…  
For the light source so wasted and gone…  
We feel the pain of a lifetime lost in a thousand days…  
Through the fire and the flames we carry on!_**

We played for another half minute before coming to an abrupt end, the final notes ringing out for a moment and then passing.

I hear the roar of the crowd, but I don't look up. Instead, I'm starring at my fingers. I can see white bone at some of the tips, and again, there is red and white.

Now my vision starts to blur, and the roars of the crowd become quieter. They still ring in my ears, but they are distant, as if hearing them from the other side of a damp tunnel. I feel lightheaded, and I can't think straight. Only one solid thought penetrates the fuzzy feeling that is overcoming me, _'Dehydration.'_

I stumble forward and search for something to support myself on. Instead, I walk off the edge of the platform and I hear vivid screams of panic. For a moment, my hearing ability increases exponentially and every screech can be heard. Then the voices dull again and I hear air flow past my ears. Another thin word forms in my mind… _'Crap!'_

That's all I could think … crap; because this situation sucked. The last thing I felt before the world went black was hard impact and sharp pain spreading through my bones.

*The Team*

M'gann shuddered as Suicide sung. He was in agony, and for some reason, he wasn't able to hide it. It was as if anything he does in song is true and full of his real emotions. He must never play for them because his music carries his thoughts and feelings.

There was vivid pain and cruel thoughts. There was loneliness and desperation. M'gann trembled as the song ended, and her friend kept his head bowed.

Moments later, he stumbled, and M'gann let out a scream along with others in the crowd.

Superboy was the closest, and he stepped forward and caught the small falling boy. Conner stiffened as he heard sharp cracks that echoed with his super hearing. Since he was Superboy, his arms were as steady as concrete, and being caught by him wasn't much better than hitting the ground; other than the fact that he actually lived. If he hadn't caught him though, Robin would be dead.

Artemis watched in horror, and she heard the band members scream. Most of them called for Suicide, but two of them… screamed the name Dick.

Everything came into a frightening clarity. She herself let out a scream and fell to her knees. Artemis understood now, and she hated it. Mostly, she hated herself.

She pictured the boy sitting in the rain with blood on his arm. She finally understood why he had said those things to her. Why he told her that she didn't want to be his friend.

As Artemis Crock, she was the only one who had reached out to the broken boy, but at the same time, he knew she was one person who caused him so much pain. And now, Artemis regretted it. She regretted everything she said to Robin in the last week. She wished more than anything that she could take it all back.

Wally didn't know what was happening, but for a moment, he was scared for his best friend's life.

_'Is he my best friend?' _The speedster thought. '_If he is, there is one thing I know for sure; I'm not his best friend. I'm not his friend at all. I'm not worthy of being called a friend.'_

Kaldur could only watch and pray that Superboy found the forgiveness to save Robin. He was overly relieved when Superboy didn't hesitate to catch the falling bird.

Superboy starred at the broken bird in his arms, and for a moment, he thought of dropping him, but instead, he held him closer. Despite everything that had happened recently, Superboy didn't hate him enough to want him dead, and he was secretly glad that he was safe.

~The Band~

On the platform, Mouth and Dan screamed out "Dick!" Mouth was the closest to him, and he reached for him, but Dick was already over the edge. "Suicide!" Mouth screamed, "No!" He was relieved when a boy from another band caught him. The band raced down to their young member.

"Rod," Dan ordered, "use your phone to call Mr. Wayne; Dick gave you his number in case of an emergency, right?" Rod nodded.

Mouth came to take the small child from the larger teen's arms, but the teen refused. He held onto Dick and stepped away. Another fiery haired boy came up. "We'll take him," the boy said.

Mouth gapped at them. "Um, no! Do you even know who he is? I don't know you, and if anything, this kid trusts us. Just hand him over so I can take him to the hospital."

"We're friends of his!" The red head persisted.

Another teen with dark skin came forward and rested his hand on the fiery one. "Just let them," he said. With a nod, Dick was handed over to Mouth and an ambulance arrived.

Mouth carried Dick over to the paramedics and sat in the ambulance with him. The rest of the band followed in cars once the equipment was put away.

"Do you know who this boy is?" One of the paramedics asked, "Is he your son?"

Mouth shook his head no as the ambulance stopped in front of the hospital. "No, his name is Dick Grayson." Mouth didn't need to say anything else.

^Bruce^

It was one o'clock in the morning when Batman returned to the cave. The night had been quiet, except for some band competition. But the only thing they did wrong was give liquor to minors; he let it go since it was a one night thing. Other than that, there had been three small-time robberies and five small drug-busts where the criminals had nothing more than clubs. It was pathetic.

So Batman had come home especially early and soon, Bruce Wayne emerged from the grandfather clock where Alfred was waiting for him.

"I think I'll sleep a couple hours," Bruce said as he walked by.

"Very good sir, and shall I wake you at seven for your conference meeting?" Alfred asked.

Bruce thought for a moment, the smiled. "No, tomorrow is Sunday, and I think I'll take the day off and spend some time with Dick. I haven't seen much of him lately, other than when he's in trouble."

Alfred nodded. "Sir, if I might ask, what of Robin?"

"What about him?"

"Master Richard hasn't been the same, you know, since that night."

Bruce stopped and looked at him. "We'll see." Just then the phone rang and Bruce strode over to pick it up. "Hello?"

"U-h um, M-M-Mr. Wayne?" a small voice asked.

"Yes, may I ask who's speaking?" there was more stuttering and the phone was handed to someone else.

"Sorry Mr. Wayne," a man said "I'm Daniel."

Bruce was trying to be patient, but he didn't know where this was going and he had been on the phone for a minute already. He rubbed his eyes in fatigue and frustration. "Alright, and is there a reason you're calling me at one in the morning?" He sounded a little angry.

"Um, yes sir. It's about Dick."

Bruce was interested now. "What about him?"

"Well, one of the band members just got in the ambulance with him…"

"An Ambulance?" Bruce cut him off. "Where is it going?"

"West Gotham hospital, I think."

Bruce considered for a moment. "Thanks for the call," he said and hung up. He was soon out the door and speeding through the dawning.

A/N: Please R&R!

**_To RJG Lover:_** To allow PM's to you (So I can Talk to you without posting it in AN) go to your account, click settings, scroll down to where it says account settings, go to the rectangle that says "Accept Private Messages (PM)", and go to the right side of the page and click the circle under yes. The little gray circle will then have a blue dot in it and you click save at the bottom of the page. Then, any time you have a PM, the tab on the left of your profile that says "Private Messaging" will have a number representing how many messages you have. Click the tab, go to Inbox, and open the message. Tada! I'm sure you'll figure it out, and I hope these are detailed enough instructions. I'm trying. PM me when you have it done or mention it in your next review, okay? And I'm glad you like the story.

Everyone, Thank You for Reading and Reviewing! If you haven't reviewed, now's your chance.


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